Pakistan violated UNGA resolution- India

By S.N.Thyagarajan

India also spoke against the unfair treatment meted out by UNGA to the persecution of Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs in countries where they are a minority

Pakistan has arbitrarily transferred the management of Kartarpur Gurudwara to a non-Sikh body, thereby violating the United Nation General Assembly resolution said Ashsih Sharma, first secretary of India’s permanent mission at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Sharma said that this act is against the Sikh religion, its preservation and its protection.

Sharma urged UNGA to recall that the holy Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara is mentioned in the December 2019 resolution. It has however been violated now, he said.The UNGA resolution Promotion of interreligious and intercultural dialogue, understanding and cooperation for peace’ was adopted in December 2019. It encouraged the initiative to open up the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor to promote interfaith harmony and peaceful neighbourhood. The resolution invoked the agreement between the Governments of India and Pakistan to allow visa-free access especially to ‘Nanak Naam Levas’ and the Sikh community from across the world, as a landmark initiative for inter-religious and intercultural cooperation for peace.

India Pakistan’s decision as “highly condemnable” in November, stating that it is against the religious sentiments of the Sikh community.

India called the approach of the United Nations “selective” in condemning acts of violence against religions, India said that the UNGA has failed to acknowledge violence against Buddhists, Hindus and Sikhs.

While acknowledging and condemning anti-Semitism, Islamaphobia and anti-Christian acts need the country also firmly condemns such acts, it was pointed that that UNGA has always focussed of Abrahamic religions . India termed this approach partial and unfair.

Sharma said “culture of peace cannot be only for Abrahamic religions. And as long as such selectivity exists, the world can never truly foster a culture of peace.”

While stating that the UN is not a body which should take sides when it comes to religion, He said if we are indeed selective , the world will end up proving American political scientist Samuel Huntington’s ‘clash of civilisations’.

“What we are trying to build here is an alliance of civilisations’, not set up a clash. I call on the UN Alliance of Civilisation to act likewise and speak for all, not just a select few, ” Sharma said

Recalling the how the Islamic fundamentalists shattered of the iconic Bamyan Buddha in Afghanistan and how the terrorists specifically targeted the Sikh community by bombing of a gurdwara in March where 25 Sikh worshipers were killed he pointed out the destruction of Hindu and Buddhist temples and minority cleansing of these religions by countries.

 Sharma said the 193-member General Assembly that such acts call for condemning violence and attacks against Buddhist, Hindu and Sikh religions also.

But the current member states refuse to speak of these religions in the same breath as the first three Abrahamic’ religions. Why is this selectivity? Sharma asked.

 Sharma apprised the UNGA that Hinduism has more than 1.2 billion followers, Buddhism has over 535 million followers and Sikhism around 30 million followers across the world

Sharma pointed out that it is time that UNGA calls out the acts of persecution and oppression committed by countries where the Hindu, Buddhist and Sikh communities are marginalised. India has never ceased to take a strict stand against persecution of any religious community.

File photo of T.S.Tirumurti

TS Tirumurti, India’s permanent representative to the UN stated that India has been a stedfast supported of Palestine’s cause and urged that the people of Palestine must not be forgotten while welcoming the decision to resume coordination between Palestinian authority and Israel.