On Wednesday, Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar declared that the Narendra Modi administration was committed to reclaiming Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and integrating it back into India.

Interacting with students at Gargi College, he also talked about how the Modi government scrapped Article 370 of the Indian Constitution even as people made starkly different assumptions.

"People just assumed that 370 (Article) cannot be changed and this is something that we have to accept. Now once we change it, the entire ground situation changes,” he said.

“All I can say with respect to PoK, there is a parliament resolution, and every political party in the country is committed to ensuring that the PoK which is part of India returns to India...,” he added. “But I do want to say one thing, I didn’t used to get people to ask us this 10 years ago or even 5 years ago. It is when we put 370 to rest, now people understand PoK is also important,” Jaishankar added.

Mr Jaishankar said the prerequisite for something happening is it must be in your thoughts.

"What has happened today is that because we have finally taken the right decision on 370, in the minds of our own people today, the PoK issue has come to the front. As they say, the first prerequisite for something happening is first it must be in your thoughts. once it is in your thoughts, the rest will certainly happen at some point," he said.

Earlier on Sunday, the foreign minister declared that 'PoK' has "never been out" of India. 

While responding to a question at an event in India's Odisha state, Jaishankar said, "PoK has never been out of this country. It is part of this country. There is a resolution of the Indian Parliament that PoK is very much a part of India.”

S Jaishankar also used the opportunity to reaffirm India's position on the current conflict between Israel and Hamas, as well as the broader Palestinian matter.

Jaishankar underscored that New Delhi backs the establishment of a homeland for the Palestinians, a stance India has openly expressed.

"We were very clear when Israel was, on October 7, when the terrorists attacked Israel that this was terrorism. We took a clear stance on it. When Israel responded, we also took a position that, whenever any military response takes place, it is very important that civilian lives are protected. And if you are displacing civilians, so they are no longer in their homes, you have to give some kind of humanitarian corridor out there," Jaishankar said.

Image source: PTI