'Politically Motivated': India slams Chinese 'hold' on the global listing of Pakistani terrorist Abdul Rauf Asghar

China has put a "technical hold" on a UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution that India and the US jointly proposed to impose sanctions on Abdul Rauf Asghar, the deputy leader of the terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a move that New Delhi has criticised as "politically motivated."

Asghar, the younger sibling of JeM leader Masood Azhar, participated in the planning and execution of a number of terrorist acts, including the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC-814, and the 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament, and the 2016 attack on the Pathankot Indian Air Force installation.

According to The Print, India on Thursday moved a resolution at the UN Security Council that was co-sponsored by the US to have Asghar added to the list by the group's 1267 Sanctions Committee. China, however, put a "technical hold" on the motion, despite the fact that all other 14 UN Security Council members "support the listing proposal."

"It is unfortunate that the sanctions committee has been prevented from playing its role due to political considerations. China's actions expose its doublespeak and double standards when it comes to the international community's shared battle against terrorism," added one of the sources.

The source further went on to add, "Such politically motivated actions by China, in nearly every listing case of a Pakistan-based terrorist, undermine the entire sanctity of the working methods of the UNSC sanctions committees."

Any individual designated as an international terrorist by the 1267 Sanctions Committee faces travel bans and monetary sanctions enforced by the United Nations.

China has prevented similar resolutions in past also 

Beijing has previously prevented the inclusion of terrorists in the 1267 Sanctions Committee. A joint request from India and the US to put Abdul Rehman Makki, the deputy leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), on the sanctions list, was put on hold by China in June 2022.

Makki has been involved in fund-raising, enlisting and radicalising youth to use violence, and organising terrorist acts against India, such as the 26/11 attack. Makki has already been designated as a terrorist under Indian and US domestic law, just as Asghar.