Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Live
Imran’shatespeechhad nostatesmanship: India
RIGHT OF REPLY Says Islamabad upstreams terror; objects to China’s J&K stand
NEW YORK: India on Friday slammedPakistanPrimeMinister Imran Khan for delivering a “hate speech” at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) which “bordered on crudeness”andsaidhisjustificationofterrorismwas“brazenand incendiary”. Exercisingitsright of reply, India also posed five questions to UN observers invitedbyKhantovisitPakistan and verify his claim that there were no militants there.
Separately, throughaspokesperson, India responded to Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s observations on J&K in his speech and said recent developments in the state are a “matter internal to India” and said countriesshould“desist”fromchanging the status quo through the “illegal so-called” China-PakistanEconomicCorridorinPakistan-occupied Kashmir.
At the UNGA, India focussed on Pakistan. “What we heard todayfromPrimeMinisterImran Khan was a callous portrayal of theworldinbinaryterms,”Vidisha Mishra, a first secretary at theIndianmissiontotheUN,said late Friday night. “Us vs them; rich vs poor; north vs south; developed vs developing; Muslims vs others. A script that fosters divisiveness at the UN. Attempts to sharpen differences andstiruphatredaresimplyput — ‘hate speech’.”
“Forsomeonewhowasoncea cricketerandbelievedinthegentleman’s game, today’s speech bordered on crudeness of the variety that is reminiscent ofthe guns of Darra Adam Khel,” the youngdiplomatsaid,referringto Pakistan’s notorious weapons market.
PM Narendra Modi had not mentionedPakistanevenoncein his speech, the first time for an India leader’s speech at the UNGAineightyears.PrimeMinister Khan was all about India andKashmirashehadvowedto, withwordsandphrasesintended todrawanapocalypticpictureof thesituationonthesubcontinent.
Mishrasaidhischoiceofwords reflected, instead, a ““medieval mindset”, andhisjustificationof terrorismwas“brazenandincendiary”even thoughit came from the prime minister of a country thathas“monopolisedtheentire valuechainoftheindustryofterrorism”.
TheIndiandiplomatthenwent on to pose a set of five questions for the UN observers that Khan has invited to Pakistan. “Can Pakistanconfirmthefactthatitis home to 130 UN designated terrorists and 25 terrorist entities listedbytheUN,asoftoday?”the diplomat asked.
“Will Pakistan acknowledge that it is the only government in the world that provides pension to an individual listed by the UN intheAlQaedaandDa’eshSanctionslist!”Thatwasareferenceto HafizSaeed,theLashkar-e-Taiba founderwhohasbeendrawinga pensionfromthegovernmentas a former college teacher.