FO rejects MEA's comment on PM's statement

06 Oct, 2019

Pakistan Saturday rejected the comments by Indian External Affairs Ministry's spokesman about Prime Minister Imran Khan's statement on Kashmir and advised India to 'keep its lectures on diplomacy and normality to itself.' "India would be well-advised to keep its lectures on diplomacy and normality to itself. All we would like to stress is 'Physician, heal thyself!;' spokesperson for Foreign Office Dr Mohammad Faisal said while reacting to his Indian counterpart Raveesh Kumar's comments during his weekly media briefing in New Delhi.
"We completely reject the comments made by the spokesman for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) about Prime Minister Imran Khan's statements and on other Kashmir and Pakistan-related issues," Dr Faisal said.
He said that exposing India's egregious behavior and state-terrorism in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir is part of Pakistan's international obligations as well as moral responsibility to the Kashmiri victims of Indian repression.
"If India feels provoked, it is only because India is unwilling to face the truth about its indefensible actions that are driven by the toxic mix of an extremist ideology and hegemonic ambitions," he said.
Equally reprehensible are India's pretensions of casting itself as a 'normal' country, he said, adding that the international community would like to ask as to "what normal country cages 8 million people in an inhuman lockdown for over two months and deceives the world" by claiming that 'everything is fine.'
"Similarly, what normal country provides space and political patronage to the perpetrators of mob lynching by cow vigilantes and repugnant schemes like Gharwapsi and love Jihad?" the spokesperson further asked.
Earlier, PM Imran Khan took to the Twitter and urged the people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir to avoid crossing the Line of Control to support the struggle of the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir.
"I understand the anguish of the Kashmiris in AJK seeing their fellow Kashmiris in IOJK under an inhumane curfew for over 2 months. But anyone crossing the LoC from AJK to provide humanitarian aid or support for Kashmiri struggle will play into the hands of the Indian narrative," Imran Khan said in a tweet.
"A narrative that tries to divert from the indigenous Kashmiris' struggle against brutal Indian occupation by trying to label it as Islamic terrorism being driven by Pakistan. It will give India an excuse to increase violent oppression of Kashmiris in the IOJK & attack across the LoC," the Prime Minister further tweeted.
The Indian External Affairs Ministry's spokesman, however, stated: "This is not the first time that such statements have come from Pakistan. Pakistan's prime minister holds a high constitutional office. He has given such statements even before. You have heard his statements even in the UNGA... such a provocative and irresponsible language he has used. We condemn this."
"I think he is not unaware of how international relations are conducted. On that basis, he gives such statements. He had given an open call for Jihad against India. This is not a normal behaviour," Kumar further stated.

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