India Blocks ‘PoK President’ Masood Khan's Event In French Parliament

The Pakistani mission was attempting to organise a meeting of the ‘PoK President’ at the National Assembly on September 24.

The president of Pakistan-administered Kashmir Masood Khan (Photo by AAMIR QURESHI / AFP)

New Delhi: India has thwarted Pakistan’s bid to facilitate a meeting between the president of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir at the French National Assembly. Through a series of diplomatic moves, India blocked PoK President Masood Khan’s event in Lower House of the French Parliament. Following a demarche issued to French Ministry by the Indian mission in Paris, Khan was barred from attending the event, news agency ANI reported. The Pakistani mission was attempting to organise a meeting of the  ‘PoK President’ at the National Assembly on September 24. However, after Indian embassy issued a demarche to the French foreign ministry stating that such an event will be infringement of India’s sovereignty. Several members of Indian diaspora also reached out to the Speaker of the parliament via e-mails and letters. France has been supportive of India at all international forums on the issue of cross-border terrorism. At the United Nations Security Council, France has supported India and its decision on Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. France had supported India in the blacklisting of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar by the UNSC 1267 sanctions committee. It also played an important role in blocking China’s effort to rake Kashmir issue from closed door informal session to a formal session.