India has strongly criticized Pakistan on the global stage, calling for introspection regarding the rule of law, specifically calling out the lifetime immunity granted to Field Marshal Asim Munir, the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF). This rebuke occurred during a UN Security Council open debate, where India's representative, Parvathaneni Harish, addressed Pakistan's assertions and actions.
The core of India's criticism revolves around the 27th Constitutional Amendment of Pakistan, passed in November 2025. This amendment not only formalized military supremacy by centralizing command of all armed forces under the CDF, but also granted Munir lifetime immunity from arrest and prosecution. The move has sparked international concern, with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, stating that the amendment was rushed through "without broad consultation and debate with the legal community and wider civil society".
Parvathaneni Harish, without directly naming Asim Munir, urged Pakistan to "introspect about the rule of law". He suggested that Pakistan should examine how its armed forces "engineer[ed] a constitutional coup through the 27th amendment and giving life-time immunity to its Chief of Defence Forces". Critics of the amendment, including constitutional lawyer Salahuddin Ahmed, have said that it "completely destroys any notion of independence in the judiciary in Pakistan," and that it effectively sets the country on the path to a "lifelong dictatorship".
India's criticism also extended to Pakistan's "false and self-serving account" of Operation Sindoor. This operation, launched by India on May 7, 2025, targeted terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025, which resulted in 26 civilian deaths. Harish clarified that India's response was "measured, non-escalatory and responsible", further stating that Islamabad had requested a cessation of hostilities.
The backdrop to these exchanges includes heightened tensions and accusations of cross-border terrorism. India has maintained that it can't tolerate Pakistan's continued use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy. Following the Pahalgam attack, India announced that it would hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably ends its support for cross-border terrorism.
The appointment of Asim Munir as Pakistan's first CDF for a five-year term followed the passage of the 27th Amendment. He was recommended for the post by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The amendment consolidated the command of the army, navy, and air force under one person, raising concerns about the concentration of power and the potential for undermining civilian supremacy. According to Aqil Shah, an adjunct associate professor at Georgetown University, the immunity granted in the amendment "makes a mockery of the principle of civilian supremacy by placing him above all reproach".
