By IANS,
Sydney: An Australian government website has wrongly portrayed the map of India – omitting the states of Jammu and Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh – leading to the “strong displeasure” of the migrant Indian community.
The wrong map was put out on the website of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) in its country profiles section.
The Council of Indian Australians Inc (CIA), the body representing the Indian-Australian community in New South Wales, said in a statement that it has “expressed its strongest displeasure at the incorrect map of India in the DIAC’s website, which excludes Jammu and Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh as parts of India”.
The Council, based in North Ryde, near Sydney, has asked the DIAC to “rectify the incorrect Indian map” on its website.
“The CIA Inc wishes to bring this to the attention of the government of Australia and urges the DIAC to rectify this incorrect map and display the revised map showing correct boundaries,” the statement said.
“Jammu and Kashmir is an integral, inseparable and inalienable part of India and will always remain so. A brief review of the history shows J&K became an inalienable part of India on 25th October, 1947 when the King of J&K Maharaja Hari Singh signed the ‘Instrument of accession’ with India.”
“This Instrument was executed between India’s then Governor General Lord Louis Mountbatten and Maharaja Hari Singh on 27th October, 1947. All rulers of States and Kingdoms in India were entitled to choose one of three options – join India, join Pakistan or remain independent – at the time of Indian independence in 1947.”
“J&K joined India in 1947,” the statement said, underlining the sentence.