Pakistan Hits Back at India for 'Hurling Threats' Over Kashmir Dispute

Kashmir has remained a bone of contention between India and Pakistan for decades, resulting in three wars over the region, which is split de facto between the countries, which each lay claim to all of it. India controls around 65 percent of the area of Jammu and Kashmir; the rest is controlled by Pakistan.

Islamabad has slammed Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh's recent remarks that Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry has described Singh's statement as "unwarranted and totally unacceptable."

"The Minister, in his remarks, distorted the well-established historical facts about the Jammu & Kashmir dispute, leveled baseless allegations, and hurled threats against Pakistan," Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said on Monday.

Rajnath Singh on Monday said that his government is committed to the resolution passed by the Indian Parliament in February 1994, asking Islamabad to vacate the disputed region presently under "occupation of Pakistan".

"Pakistan-occupied Kashmir was, is and shall always remain an integral part of India. How is it possible that Baba Amarnath (Lord Shiva's form) is in India and Maa Sharda Shakti (Hindu Goddess) is across the Line of Control," Singh underlined.

He was speaking at a commemoration ceremony of the Kargil Victory Day, the celebration of the Indian armed forces against Pakistan in the 1999 war.

Sitting aside Singh, Dattatreya Hosabale, second in command of Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh, the parent organization of PM Modi's ruling BJP party, said the people of Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir are "looking towards India" to get freedom from Islamabad.

The dispute between the two nuclear powers over Kashmir dates back to 1947, when Pakistan took over the then princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, ruled by a Hindu king. The ruler sought New Delhi's help and signed the Instrument of Accession with India.

India-Pakistan ties hit rock bottom in 2019 after Delhi divided the Jammu and Kashmir state into two union territories. In response, Pakistan expelled the Indian ambassador and halted bilateral trade with India.

Islamabad has accused New Delhi of mistreating the rights of the region's Muslim population, while India accuses Pakistan of backing separatists in Jammu & Kashmir, undermining security in the region.