The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while condemning on Friday the “highly irresponsible remarks” made by Indian Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, termed them “the usual Indian bogey of terrorism”.

According to a statement by the Foreign Office, the top Indian general had suggested putting young Kashmiri children in “de-radicalisation camps” and sought to place Pakistan on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) blacklist.

“These remarks are reflective of the extremist mindset and bankrupt thinking that have evidently also permeated the state institutions of India,” said the FO spokesperson in a statement.

The statement, which referred to Gen Rawat's remarks at the Raisina Dialogue 2020, added that as a perpetrator of “unabated state-terrorism in the Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IOK)”, India is in no position to pontificate on the issue of terrorism.

“The IOK has already been turned into the world’s largest prison camp with 8 million Kashmiris incarcerated there since August, 5, 2019. With over 900,000 Indian occupation forces perpetrating egregious violations of human rights, draconian laws such as Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) and Public Safety Act (PSA) enabling them complete impunity, and over 13,000 young Kashmiri boys abducted from their homes and away from their families, Gen Rawat’s talk of 'de-radicalisation camps' for Kashmiri children is simply despicable,” read the statement.

The spokesperson further said that Gen Rawat’s remarks regarding the FATF were proof of India’s “repeated attempts to politicise FATF’s technical proceedings for advancing its narrow, partisan objectives”, adding that Pakistan had on multiple occasions informed the world community about India’s designs in this regard.

“We also expect that the world community would take cognisance of the BJP government’s desperate attempts to divert attention from the unacceptable situation in IOK, growing domestic protests against discriminatory laws and practices, and its unabashed animus towards India’s minorities,” the statement reads.

“India must be held accountable for its illegal actions.”