UNHRC assessment on Kashmir baseless: Sitharaman

Union Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday dubbed the recent assessment report by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Kashmir as baseless.

"The report (on Kashmir) is prepared sitting somewhere else. Assessment made by the UNHRC is without basis. If only they see what is on the ground. Indian Army shows the maximum restraint," Sitharaman said here.

On June 14, the UN released its first ever human rights report on Kashmir accusing security forces of gross human rights violations on both sides of the border.

The report demanded Pakistan to stop using its anti-terror legislation to crack down on activists. On the other hand, it accused India of using excessive force on civilians.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has also tagged the report as "biased and motivated."

Reacting to the comments on a Pakistani-Canadian national, Zafar Bangash who claimed that he played a role in producing the report on Kashmir, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, "The document very clearly reflected bias of an official acting without any mandate and who relied on unverified sources of information. It is very clear that report which was put out was motivated and biased."

Bangash earlier admitted that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, was in constant touch with him while preparing the human rights report on Kashmir, which has been rejected by India.