How can anything foreign be in a jugular vein?: India hits back at Pakistan Army chief over Kashmir remark

India on Thursday strongly rebutted Pakistani Army chief General Asim Munir’s remarks describing Kashmir as Pakistan’s “jugular vein,” calling the claim baseless and asserting that the only relationship Pakistan has with Kashmir is to vacate the territory it occupies illegally.

Responding to questions at a media briefing, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Jammu and Kashmir is a Union Territory of India and dismissed Munir’s comments as unfounded. He asked how “anything foreign” could be in a country's jugular vein and reiterated that Pakistan’s role with respect to Kashmir is limited to vacating the regions it illegaly occupies.

General Munir had made the comments earlier while addressing a gathering of overseas Pakistanis earlier this week. Referring to Kashmir, he said the region had been, and would continue to be, Pakistan’s jugular vein, and that the country would never abandon its support for the people of Kashmir.

In the same speech, Munir invoked the Two-Nation Theory, reinforcing the ideological foundations of Pakistan. He said Pakistan’s founders believed Muslims and Hindus were different in every aspect — from religion to customs, traditions, and ambitions — and that this belief formed the basis for the creation of the country.

The army chief urged the Pakistani diaspora to share this version of history with their children, positioning them as cultural ambassadors of Pakistan and reinforcing a sense of belonging to a “superior ideology and culture.”

His remarks, coming at a time of growing regional tension and domestic challenges for Pakistan, underlined the military’s continued influence in shaping the country’s political narrative.