Aditya Raj Kaul declines Oxford Union debate on Kashmir; calls out "India baiters"

Senior Indian journalist Aditya Raj Kaul has refused to participate in an Oxford Union debate on the topic "This House Believes in an Independent State of Kashmir." Citing concerns over the inclusion of controversial figures with ties to terror financing, Kaul refused to engage with "India baiters" in the debate.

The invitation was extended by Oxford Union President Ebrahim Osman-Mowafy. Kaul had initially accepted the invitation, but withdrew it later over concerns of Union's choice of co-panelists, notably Muzammil Ayub Thakur, a Pakistani-origin activist with reported links to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and terror financing. Thakur was booked by Jammu and Kashmir police in May 2022 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for alleged anti-national activities.

Kaul isn't the only one to have refused Oxford Union's invite. Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri declined Oxford Union's invitation to debate on Kashmir and said he found the theme "offensive, anti-India and anti-Kashmir."

"The first thing is why there should be a debate on undisputed factors. Their motion says we believe that Kashmir is an independent state... A lot of people believe that Earth is flat. So have a debate on that... I could sense sinister politics behind it," the filmmaker had said on the topic.

In his letter, Kaul criticized the institution's decision to invite individuals with questionable backgrounds, as he said that it compromises the integrity of the debate and the institution. He was disappointment that an institution with such prestigious history of promoting free speech and democratic values would give a platform to individuals aligned with Pakistan's deep state, referring to the ongoing ethnic tensions in Kashmir and the suffering of Kashmiri Pandits, the exiled community to which he belongs.

"As a Kashmiri exiled at birth, who would yearn for peace, it would have been a great opportunity for me to express my views, but I am afraid that the dice seem already loaded. A great institution, or at least a section of it, seems to have been highjacked by the very forces who are inimical to its foundational values of democracy and debate," he wrote in his letter.

"I would have loved to participate in a fair debate on Kashmir. But I cannot do so when asked to argue with those who have contributed to the ethnic cleansing of my community and are responsible for the suffering of Kashmiris," Kaul added in his response.

Responding to his tweet on X, formerly Twitter, many of his followers wished to see him on the debate to represent India. But Kaul's decision was firm on principle. 

"I would have gone. But not to debate against a terrorist who has blood on his hands," Kaul wrote in response to a suggestion of him participating in the debate. 

"We don't debate with terrorists," Kaul responded in another reply to his tweet.