Article 370: Pakistan condemns, says 'will take all possible options to counter illegal steps'
Meanwhile, India’s Ministry of Home Affairs has asked all security forces, specifically in Jammu and Kashmir, to stay on 'high alert'.
Hours after Home Minister Amit Shah announced the abolition of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir, the Pakistan government condemned the move and called it a violation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution.
"No unilateral step by the Government of India can change this disputed status, as enshrined in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions. Nor will this ever be acceptable to the people of Jammu & Kashmir and Pakistan," Pakistan ministry of foreign affairs' said in a statement.
“As the party to this international dispute, Pakistan will exercise all possible options to counter the illegal steps. Pakistan reaffirms its abiding commitment to the Kashmir cause,” it further added.
Meanwhile, India’s Ministry of Home Affairs has asked all security forces, specifically in Jammu and Kashmir, to stay on 'high alert'.
The Union Home ministry has directed all Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and central security agencies to take "necessary precautions" and step up protection of their campuses and movements by issuing specific advisories.
The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, which is expected to be passed in Rajya Sabha today, will be brought to Lok Sabha tomorrow.
Apart from the resolution to repeal Article 370, Union minister Amit Shah also moved a bill proposing bifurcation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories -- Jammu and Kashmir division and Ladakh.
Calling it a "dark day" in Indian democracy, Congress leader and Opposition leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said that the “BJP is drunk on power and the government acted like thieves in the night.”
Earlier, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah--both former chief minister of the state--lambasted the government’s decision to repeal Article 370.