Abhishek Yadav, University of Allahabad
INTRODUCTION
Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere . We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly”.On October 19471, the Pashtun tribesmen from the North-West Frontier Province raided the Kingdom of Jammu & Kashmir and captured a total area of 84,159 km2 this area is known as Pakistan Occupied Kashmir or de facto Aazad Kashmir and is currently under the control of the Government of Pakistan. According to the Government of India Jammu & Kashmir is an integral part of India. On 26 October 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh agreed to accede his state to the Dominion of India and signed the Jammu and Kashmir Instrument of Accession it came into effect on 27 October 1947 and Jammu & Kashmir became an integral part of India including the Gilgit-Baltistan & Pakistan Occupied Kashmir also known as de facto Azad Kashmir. The citizens living in the areas of Pakistan- Occupied Kashmir (POK) and Gilgit-Baltistan are citizens of India because the POK is part of India. Around 1.9 million population lives there and faces human rights and legal rights breaches daily. As they are considered the citizens of India they should get all the Legal Rights guaranteed by the constitution of India. But they are living under a de facto state is known as Azad Kashmir administered by the Government of Pakistan. The OHCHR (Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights) Report of 8 July 2019 states that serious Human rights and legal rights abuses are happening in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Brad Adams, the director of HRW (Human Rights Watch) in Asia has said in 2006 "Although 'Azad' means 'free,' the residents of Azad Kashmir are anything but not free. The Pakistani authorities govern POK with strict controls on basic freedoms".
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