It was a victory for the Indian delegation led by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla at the South Asian Speakers’ Summit in Male as it overlooked assertions made by Pakistan while adopting the final resolution, or the Male Declaration.
On Sunday, Pakistan’s deputy speaker of the National Assembly, Qasim Suri, tried to rake up the Kashmir issue and the nullification of Article 370 during a debate on Sustainable Development Goals.
Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh immediately raised a point of order and was allowed to speak. In a strong response, Harivansh hit out at Pakistan for raising India’s internal issue and politicisation of the forum.
On Monday, as the Male Declaration was finalised, India’s position was prominently reflected. The declaration included commitments to work collectively on promoting equality at work including equal remuneration and creating jobs for young people, nutrition and food security as drivers of maternal, child and adolescent health in the Asia-Pacific region and overcoming challenges and utilising opportunities to strengthen the regional agenda for delivering on Paris agreement.
“After the conclusion of the third session of the summit, the draft Male declaration was made available for the consideration of the speakers and presiding officers of Parliament. Subsequently, a closed-door round-table meeting was held to finalise the draft. The Indian delegation proposed several additions and amendments to the draft which were accepted unanimously,” said an official.
{{/usCountry}}“After the conclusion of the third session of the summit, the draft Male declaration was made available for the consideration of the speakers and presiding officers of Parliament. Subsequently, a closed-door round-table meeting was held to finalise the draft. The Indian delegation proposed several additions and amendments to the draft which were accepted unanimously,” said an official.
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