Pakistan says India can boycott CPC, but won't budge
Refusing to budge from its stand on not inviting J&K assembly speaker to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC), Pakistan said if India boycotts the conference, it's "their choice." Pakistan's National Assembly speaker Ayaz Sadiq said, "Pakistan will not invite the speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly to the CPC. The assembly of Kashmir is not legitimate, so we will not accept it."
Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC) is an annually held conference of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA). Global political issues and developments in the parliamentary system are analyzed through debates among leading Parliamentarians representing Parliaments and Legislatures throughout the Commonwealth. The 61st CPC, which is the first-ever CPA conference to be hosted by Pakistan, will be held in Islamabad from 30 September to 8 October 2015.
The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association is divided into nine commonwealth regions - Africa; Asia; Australia; British Islands and Mediterranean; Canada; Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic; India; Pacific; and South-East Asia. The CPA Secretariat is based in London.
Pakistan which had invited the Speakers of the Indian Parliament and the state assemblies to the CPC, refused to invite Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Speaker Kavinder Gupta. Upset with this, India threatened to boycott the conference. Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan announced the decision after a meeting of Speakers from all Indian states in New Delhi. She said that it was 'unanimously' decided.
Indian high commissioner TCA Raghavan said Pakistan had violated protocol by not inviting the speaker of Jammu and Kashmir. He also said that Pakistan had invited delegations from J&K in the past.
India has asked Commonwealth Parliamentary association to shift the venue of CPC from Islamabad. India said Pakistan forfeited its right to host the conference by not inviting J&K branch which was in violation of CPA's constitution. LS speaker Sumitra Mahajan stated the above in writing to CPA. In her letter, she also called for immediate resolution and to ensure invitation to the J&K Speaker.
