*WASHINGTON: *Washington on Monday urged respect for rights and called forthe maintenance of peace along the Line of Control (LoC) after Indiarevoked the special status of occupied Kashmir.
New Delhi’s action sparked fears of further violence in the occupiedterritory.
“We are concerned about reports of detentions and urge respect forindividual rights and discussion with those in affected communities,” StateDepartment spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement.
Just ahead of the Indian announcement, senior former and current Kashmiripolitical leaders said that they had been put under house arrest.
“We call on all parties to maintain peace and stability along the Line ofControl”, Ortagus said.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist party rushedthrough a presidential decree to scrap from the constitution special statusfor the Indian occupied Kashmir.
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It also moved a bill proposing the Indian-administered part of Kashmir bedivided into two regions directly ruled by New Delhi.
Ortagus said the US is “closely following” events in Jammu and Kashmirstate, but noted that India has described its actions as “strictly aninternal matter.”
US President Donald Trump last month said, during a meeting with PrimeMinister Imran Khan, that Modi had asked Trump to help mediate the Kashmirdispute. -APP/AFP
