India criticizes Pak, says Islamabad has “long-standing practice of cross-border terrorism”; warns of consequences | Today’s news
India launched a scathing attack on Pakistan at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Friday (local time), warning that there would be consequences for cross-border terrorism by Pakistan and rejecting Islamabad’s remarks on India and Jammu and Kashmir.
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India criticizes Pakistan over cross-border terrorism
Indian Permanent Mission to the UN First Secretary Petal Gahlot, exercising his right of reply to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s speech at the UN General Assembly in New York, described the Islamabad government as a “puppet regime”. The remarks came after Sharif used the UN General Assembly to thank US President Donald Trump for his “timely intervention” during the four-day military confrontation between India and Pakistan in May 2025.
Gahlot said: “We have heard some hypocritical homilies about democratic rights and human values from a regime whose capital is being fortified against its own people at the moment.” She added that the Pakistani prime minister’s remarks came roughly a fortnight after the US marked the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Gahlot noted: “This comes just a fortnight after New York and the world commemorated the 25th anniversary of the horrific terrorist attack of 9/11. This context is important to keep in mind because its mastermind, Osama bin Laden, lived right on the doorstep of a premier academy of the Pakistani military. It was the very entity that was so deeply vilified before us today.”
Responding to Sharif’s remarks on cross-border terrorism, the Indian representative noted that Islamabad has a “long-standing practice” of cross-border terrorism, adding that Delhi had made it clear during last year’s military confrontation and Operation Sindoor that terrorists would now have nowhere to run or hide.
She said: “Our right to defend ourselves against terrorism will be exercised. And continued terrorism by Pakistan will have consequences. It will of course challenge what was built on friendship and goodwill.”
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India criticizes Pakistan’s 27th amendment
Referring to the 27th Constitutional Amendment passed by Pakistan in November last year, which allows Chief of Defense Forces and Chief of Army Staff, Field Marshal Asim Munir, immunity for life from any legal prosecution, Gahlot said: “And this is happening because this is an army, army, army regime. Their puppets, but the puppets let us come and go. It is expressed in her of the 27th Amendment and the lifetime immunity granted to its real ruler.”
The Pakistani Prime Minister raised the issue of Kashmir and inland navigation at the UN General Assembly
Facing several crises at home, including a declining economy, massive protests against the continued detention of former prime minister Imran Khan and unrest in Balochistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), Sharif raised the issue of Jammu and Kashmir at the UN General Assembly. In his roughly 23-minute speech, while raising the issue of Kashmir, the Pakistani prime minister said that preventing South Asia from returning to the brink of conflict in 2025 will require a just and lasting solution to the Kashmir issue.
New Delhi exercised its right of reply and highlighted the atrocities being committed by Islamabad while asserting that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India.
Gahlot stated, “References have been made to the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. This is an integral and inalienable part of my country and will always remain so. But if we have to talk about Kashmir, let’s focus our attention on Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Ask the people of Rawalkot about the indiscriminate killings, the long-term denial of fundamental rights and the denial of fundamental rights.”
The Pakistani Prime Minister also commented on the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), which India continues to shelve despite the recent ruling by the Hague Tribunal that the treaty remains in full force. Sharif told the assembly that any attempt by India to “stop, impede or divert” Pakistan’s share of the waters “will be considered an act of war”. He went on to say that the water of the Indus River serves as the “lifeblood” not only of the people of Pakistan but of the entire region.
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Sharif’s remarks at the UN General Assembly come at a difficult time for his government as the PoK region has been witnessing widespread protests for months against 12 disputed seats for refugees, prompting a crackdown by security forces and allegations of rigging in the recently held elections.
