Abrogation Of Article 370 Is Internal Issue, We Stand By India In Fight Against Terror: EU MPs
Mumbai: Describing Article 370 as an internal issue of India, EU MPs visiting Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday said they stand by the country in the fight against global terrorism.
Addressing a press conference on the last day of their two-day visit to the Valley, a group of 23 members of the European Parliament also condemned the killing of five workers of West Bengal by terrorists on Tuesday.
“If we talk about Article 370 then it is the internal matter of India. What concerns we are a global threat and we should stand with India in fighting it. Five innocent labourers were killed by terrorists Was an unfortunate incident, said Henry Malosse from France.
He said the team received briefings from the military and police as well as youth activists and exchanged “ideas of peace”.
Newton Dunn from Britain described the trip, which aimed at first-hand assessment of the state after the repeal of the state’s special status under Article 370, as “eye-opener”
“We are from a place in Europe that is peaceful after years of fighting. And we want to see India becoming the most peaceful country in the world. And for this, we need to stand by India in its fight against global terrorism.
“An eye-opener and we will definitely advocate what we have seen at Ground Zero,” he told reporters.
The delegation is Kashmir’s first high-level foreign visit after the Center’s August 5 decision to cancel the state’s special status and split it into two union territories, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Wednesday is the last day of Jammu and Kashmir as a state.
Thierry Mariani, also from France, told the media that he had visited India several times and that the visit was not to interfere in India’s internal affairs, but to gain first-hand knowledge of the ground situation in Kashmir.
He said, “Terrorists can destroy a country. I have gone to Afghanistan and Syria and I have seen what terrorism has done. We are standing with India in the fight against terrorism.”
Referring to some media reports, he said that calling us fascist has tarnished our image. It is better than someone knows about us properly before tarnishing our image.
The team arrived here on Tuesday to a complete shutdown, stone-pelting and clashes between people and security forces in several parts of the city and the Valley.
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