Turning terrorism into statecraft, Pakistan continues to misuse OIC platform: MEA

New Delhi, June 23 India on Monday slammed the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), rejecting its "unwarranted and factually incorrect" references to India at the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers' Meeting while reiterating that it has no locus standi to comment on India's internal affairs, including Jammu and Kashmir,

"These statements, driven by Pakistan, which has turned terrorism into statecraft, reflect the continued misuse of the OIC platform for narrow political ends," read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

The 51st Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of the OIC was held in Turkey's Istanbul on June 21-22. It adopted 147 resolutions and the Istanbul Declaration.

New Delhi spotlighted that the OIC's repeated failure to acknowledge the real and documented threat of terrorism emanating from Pakistan, most recently evidenced in the heinous Pahalgam attack, reflects a wilful disregard for facts and the global consensus on the fight against terrorism.

"The OIC has no locus standi to comment on India's internal affairs, including Jammu & Kashmir, which is an integral and sovereign part of India — a fact enshrined in the Indian Constitution and irreversibly settled. The OIC should reflect deeply on the perils of allowing Pakistan's propaganda to hijack and politicize its agenda. Any other course can only undermine the OIC's credibility and relevance," read the MEA statement.

It mentioned further that the comments made by Pakistan at the OIC meeting are nothing more than a "desperate attempt" to deflect international attention from its own appalling record of state-sponsored terrorism, minority persecution and sectarian violence, apart from failure of governance.

"India also outrightly rejects Pakistan's baseless allegation of 'unprovoked and unjustified military aggression'. India's Operation Sindoor in response to the Pahalgam terror attack was a precise and legitimate act of self-defence against terrorist camps operating from Pakistani territory. It is absurd for Pakistan to speak of targeting only Indian military installations when its retaliatory attempts not only failed but recklessly endangered civilian lives and property and ended up causing several deaths and injuries among the civilian population," the MEA added.

"It is also ironic that Pakistan, a country with an abysmal human rights record and a history of sheltering, breeding and empowering terrorists, should lecture others on counter-terrorism and human rights," it added.

The OIC, an organisation with a membership of 57 states spread over four continents, terms itself as the "collective voice" of the Muslim world and endeavours to "safeguard and protect" the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony among various people of the world.

In April, just ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Saudi Arabia, India had called out Pakistan's shenanigans in OIC, calling it as a 'habit of longstanding'.

"It is a habit of longstanding, one that we have regularly spoken out against and also raised with our friends and partners in the OIC. There is a certain view about these shenanigans that Pakistan practices in the OIC on the part of our colleagues and friends amongst the other members of the OIC but we will continue to share our views and bring to their attention what exactly we think of these attempts that Pakistan habitually makes," said Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri while debunking Pakistan's false claims and attempts to misuse the forum.

Over the last many years, New Delhi has called out the need to correct some of the misperceptions about India that are perpetrated by countries like Pakistan in the OIC, asserting that the platform should not subverted by these vested interests for comments on internal affairs of India or for anti-India propaganda through biased and one sided resolutions.

"It is regrettable that OIC continues to allow itself to be used by a certain country, which has an abominable record on religious tolerance, radicalism and persecution of minorities, to indulge in anti-India propaganda. We strongly advise the OIC to refrain from making such references in future," the MEA has stated before, pointing towards Pakistan's repeated attempts.

India has enjoyed deep historical, economic, and strategic ties with the Islamic world which have further been boosted in the past decade under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.

Several analysts believe that PM Modi has enhanced India's relationship with Muslim-majority countries in South Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East to strengthen India's security and economy.

As PM Modi continues his outreach to the Islamic world, India's engagement with the Gulf region and the OIC nations - having bilateral trade with the country exceeding $200 billion - has become more robust and multifaceted in the past 11 years.

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