Defeated in wars by India, embarrassed at the hands of Indian diplomats at the United Nations, Pakistan has a history of being humiliated by India globally. In a latest, on 24th October, India’s First Secretary at the Permanent Mission to the UN, Raghoo Puri, responded to Pakistan’s criticisms on Kashmir and said that Pakistan was trying to “paint a propagandist picture” of India to deflect attention from its domestic issues. The Indian diplomat went on to taunt Islamabad, saying that the “Form 47 government” of Pakistan will not dare to override directions from the Pakistani military, the “real rulers” of the country.
During a dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues at the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee, Raghoo Puri said that Pakistan was attempting to malign India’s image to deflect global attention from its own opprobrious record on minority rights and domestic issues, including economic instability, deteriorating law and order, and human rights abuses.
“I am hard-pressed to find any such example from Pakistan, whose delegate predictably misused this platform to paint a propagandist picture of my country. But of course, the interest of the Fauj, the Pakistani army, who are the real rulers of the country, is supreme, and we fully understand the predicament of the Pakistani representative,” Puri said.
“What better way to deflect attention from a flailing economy, general lawlessness, and rampant human rights violations from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Balochistan? But of course, the interest of the Fauj, the Pakistani army, who are the real rulers of the country, is supreme, and we fully understand the predicament of the Pakistani representative,” Puri added.
Urging the Pakistani delegate to focus on the well-being of their country’s citizens and vacate Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), the Indian diplomat at the UN said, “As far as Jammu and Kashmir is concerned, it is an integral and inalienable part of India, and the only question that remains is the vacation of the region illegally occupied by Pakistan. We would urge the Pakistani delegate to heed the counsel of her own countrymen, look inwards, and focus on the well-being of her own citizens first. But we do understand, unfortunately, that the Form 47 government dare not override instructions from the Pakistani military.”
#IndiaAtUN At the #UNGA Third Committee, First Secretary Raghoo Puri participated in the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues. He highlighted: ➡️ Protection of minority rights is primarily the sovereign duty of States, guided by the principle of sovereign equality. ➡️ 🇮🇳’s civilizational ethos of diversity is reflected in constitutional safeguards for religious and linguistic minorities. ➡️ Minorities have contributed immensely to 🇮🇳’s development, including at the highest levels of government and institutions. ➡️ Pakistan predictably misused the forum for propaganda. ➡️ Jammu & Kashmir is an integral and inalienable part of India. Pakistan must vacate the territory under its illegal occupation. ➡️ Pakistan’s representatives would do well to look inwards and focus on the welfare of their own citizens rather than follow the dictates of their military. @PMOIndia @MEAIndia @IndianDiplomacy @airnewsalerts @DDNewslive
— India at UN, NY (@IndiaUNNewYork) October 24, 2026
The Indian diplomat’s sharp retort left the Pakistani delegation at the UN visibly embarrassed, particularly the “Form 47 government” jibe.
What “Form 47 government” means
The “Form 47 government” is essentially a political taunt which traces its roots to Pakistan’s February 2024 general elections. These elections were marred by irregularities, delays, and results of manipulation.
Accusing the Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition of rigging the elections, former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and its supporters popularised the phrase “Form 47 government”, alleging that it lacks a genuine public mandate.
PTI supporters continue to push the allegations that the current Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) led coalition government was installed by the Pakistani military via rigged elections.
Notably, the Election Commission of Pakistan uses a series of official forms for recording and compiling poll results.
Of these, two forms are crucial: Form 45 and Form 47.
Form 45 carries the result of the count. It is prepared by the Presiding Officer at each polling station and records registered voters, votes cast, and a candidate-wise breakdown for that specific station. Form 45 is signed by the officer and is made available to agents of candidates for transparency.
Pertinently, Form 47 includes the provisional consolidated outcomes for an entire constituency. It is prepared by the Returning Officer by tallying the Form 45s from the polling stations in that constituency, excluding postal ballots. Form 47 lists candidate-wise votes, total cast, deleted votes, etc. It is announced as provisional before final verification.
PTI has been alleging that there were major discrepancies in the 2024 election results. It maintains that Form 45s held by agents frequently showed PTI-backed independent candidates leading or winning at the polling-station level; however, the Form 47 consolidated numbers declared PML-N and Pakistan People’s Party-linked candidates as winners.
Candidates and their representatives were being denied Form 45s by the presiding officers.
Imran Khan’s party alleged that its mandate was “stolen in the dark of the night.” Khan himself asserted that PTI had won far more seats, 170, based on Form 45 data than the official results declared.
Back then, reports about delayed election results and internet blackouts further lent credence to PTI’s election rigging allegations.
In March 2024, around 31 members of the US Congress signed a letter to then President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, asking them not to recognise the new government in Pakistan until a probe into election rigging allegations clears them.
In May 2026, a leaked Pakistani diplomatic cypher brought the 2022 ouster of former Prime Minister Imran Khan into focus. The cypher showed how the United States views his removal through a no-confidence vote as the way to reset the relationship with Islamabad.
The document, which was marked “SECRET” and “No circulation”, had information about a meeting that took place on 7th March 2022 between then-ambassador of Pakistan to Washington, Asad Majeed Khan and then-US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Donald Lu.
The leaked cable accessed by Drop Site strengthened the allegations that the regime change that happened in 2022 in Pakistan was backed by the US. The document drew a connection between Khan’s Russian policy, which was disliked by the US, and the internal no-confidence vote that removed him from office. It also recorded a blunt signal from the American side that if Khan is removed, Washington will “forgive everything”.
When Imran Khan won the 2018 election, the US expected him and, by extension, Pakistan, to act as a loyal instrument. It was believed that Khan became Prime Minister with Washington’s backing, and there was chatter that he was a puppet of the US. However, as time passed by, his foreign policy, among other things, seemingly angered the “bosses” sitting in Washington.
After Khan’s removal in April 2022, the new PML-N-led government, backed by the de facto ruler, the Pakistan Army, rushed to repair ties with Washington.
In no time, Pakistan emerged as a quiet supplier of artillery shells and other military equipment to Ukraine. The weapons were reportedly routed through US defence contractors and third-country intermediaries.
A Drop Site report also said that American support for Pakistan’s next IMF programme was linked to the continuation of the weapons pipeline.
In July 2023, the IMF approved a 3-billion-dollar standby arrangement for Pakistan.
Under Khan, Pakistan abstained at the UN and tried to maintain a neutral line.
However, after he was ousted from power and jailed, Pakistan’s “Form 47 government” became useful to Washington’s Ukraine war effort. The Army-backed puppet government traded Pakistan’s sovereignty for self-gain.
In recent months, the world has seen how PM Shehbaz Sharif and madarsa-bred Field Marshal Asim Munir became Washington’s eager courtiers.
In a nutshell, the “Form 47 government” is a diplomatic-political jibe for Pakistan’s illegitimate, army-controlled ruling dispensation installed through election manipulation.
