Tough talk by Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Kashmir and says talk only on POK

Foreign Affairs

New Delhi. Countering the vicious Pakistan campaign on Kashmir by Prime Minister Imran Khan, Home Minister Rajnath Singh took a tough posture on the issue emphatically declaring that if talks are to be held with Pakistan, they will be only on Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) but before that Pakistan should stop aiding terrorism in this country.

“Whatever talks take place, that will be on the issue of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. No talks will be done on another issue,” Rajnath Singh said adding that “the people of Pakistan say there should be talks between India and Pakistan. On what issue talks should take place ? Pakistan is aiding and abetting terrorism from its soil. There is no reason for talks until Pakistan puts an end to terrorism.”

Singh’s tough talk comes in the wake of the vicious tirade by Pakistan Prime Minister against India, comparing it to Nazi Germany in a series of ludicrous tweets. While Pakistan’s founding fathers had themselves rejected Nehru and Gandhiji’s vision of a composite India in favour of the two-nation theory, the Pakistan PM claimed the BJP-led Government was a threat to the fabric of “Nehru and Gandhi’s India”. While trying to spread a scare, Khan conveniently forgot to mention his own country’s track record of sponsoring terrorism, including sheltering terrorist Laden for many years and carrying out of brazen cross-border terror strikes in the past nearly three decades against India.

On the revocation of Article 370 and making Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh a union territory, Singh said these decisions had made Pakistan jittery and a cause of concern for them.

“Now it (Pakistan) is knocking every door and approaching various countries for help. Have we committed any crime? And they are trying to threaten us. However, America, perceived as the most powerful country in the world by people, has snubbed Pakistan, telling them to initiate a dialogue with India,” he said.