Union minister and former Indian Army chief VK Singh made statement suggesting Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) would eventually become part of India. He made this statement in response to questions about the demands Shia Muslims seeking the opening of Kargil border crossing with India.
PoK’s Eventual Integration with India
Singh stated, “PoK will eventually merge with India, just wait for some time.” He made this remark during press conference in Rajasthan’s Dausa, part of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Parivartan Sankalp Yatra program.
#WATCH | Dausa, Rajasthan | "PoK will merge with India on its own, wait for some time," says Union Minister Gen VK Singh (Retd.) when asked that people in PoK have demanded that they be merged with India. (11.09.2023) pic.twitter.com/xG2qy7hXEm
— ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2023
PoK is currently divided into two parts: Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan with total population of approximately 4.5 million mostly Muslims along some Hindus and Christians.
Shiv Sena’s Support and Questions on PoK Merger
In response to Singh’s comments Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut expressed support for the idea of PoK merging with India but questioned why such efforts were not made when Singh held the position of Army chief.
Raut also highlighted the need for peace in Manipur given the ongoing violence there. Additionally he urged the government to address China’s presence in Manipur, Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh citing concerns raised by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi about China’s actions in Ladakh.
