India on Wednesday rejected the Pakistan-China Boundary Joint Commission, saying the body has no legal basis to decide on arrangements related to Indian territory under illegal occupation. The response came after the commission held its first meeting in Islamabad.
The Ministry of External Affairs said India’s position on the matter remains “clear and consistent”. It said there is no boundary between Pakistan and China, and stressed that any such cooperation concerning Indian territories is unacceptable and has no bearing on India’s sovereignty.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “Our position on this matter is clear and consistent. There is no boundary between Pakistan and China. We reject the so-called Joint Commission, which is without any legal basis.”
India has consistently maintained that Pakistan’s handing over of certain territories, including the Shaksgam Valley, to China in 1963 was illegal and unacceptable. New Delhi has also opposed the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, saying part of it passes through Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.
Jaiswal said the entire Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh “have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India”. He added, “We have never recognised the so-called ‘China-Pakistan Boundary Agreement’ of 1963 and have consistently maintained that it is illegal and invalid.”
The spokesperson said, “We resolutely oppose and reject any attempts to alter the status of these occupied territories or legitimise illegal occupation, impinging on India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
He also said, “Any so-called boundary cooperation between China and Pakistan concerning Indian territories would be completely unacceptable and would have no bearing whatsoever on India’s sovereignty over these territories.”
Calling on Pakistan to “immediately vacate areas under its illegal and forcible occupation”, Jaiswal said such moves were “theatrics”. India’s response reiterated its rejection of the joint commission, the 1963 agreement, and any attempt by Pakistan and China to discuss or alter the status of territories that it regards as its own.
