THE LEGAL STATUS OF GILGIT-BALTISTAN IN THE KASHMIR DISPUTE UNDER PAKISTAN

Abstract

In administrating a disputed territory, the authority governing the territory is required to ensure the extension of fundamental and human rights to the controlled territory under the obligations of International Law. The case of Gilgit Baltistan is unique in a way that it is managed by Pakistan as its de facto part due to its historical linkage with the Kashmir Dispute resulting in an uncertain Lego-political position of the region in the Dispute as well as in the federation of Pakistan. This paper is a comprehensive inquest into the legal aspect of GB using the concepts of International Law, UN mediation and the verdicts of Municipal Courts regarding the Lego-political positioning of the region. As GB is a part of the Kashmir Dispute, the UN resolutions regarding the dispute also extends to the region. Pakistan is under the obligation to ensure good governance and extension of fundamental rights to the part of the erstwhile state of J&K under its administration (AJK & GB) according to the UN resolutions. The Supreme Court of Pakistan has also directed the government of Pakistan to extend the fundamental rights entrenched in the Constitution to the region and to treat the people of GB as par with the other citizens of Pakistan. However, due to the linkage of GB with the Kashmir Dispute, the government of Pakistan could not fulfil the UN obligations and implement the Court’s decision about the region’s legal and political future.

Keywords: Kashmir Dispute, Legal Status of Gilgit-Baltistan, UN Mediation, UN Resolutions on Kashmir, International Law, Municipal Court Decisions, Supreme Court of Pakistan, Constitutional and Fundamental Rights.