SOURCE: HT
India on Thursday rejected Pakistan’s allegation that the June 29 terrorist attack on Karachi stock exchange was New Delhi’s response to 2008 Mumbai terror attacks as “absurd” and chided Islamabad for attempting to shift the blame for its own domestic problems. The external affairs ministry added that Pakistan needed to reflect on its government’s attitude towards terrorism in the light of their Prime Minister Imran Khan’s recent comments describing slain al-Qaeda leader and global terrorist Osama Bin Laden as a “martyr”.
A day after the terror attack on Karachi stock exchange, Imran Khan had claimed in Pakistan’s national assembly that the attacks had been “planned by our neighbouring country India”. Soon after, China circulated a draft of a press statement for the UN Security Council to issue, condemning the Karachi attacks. However, interventions by countries friendly to India such as Germany and the United States led to more than 24-hours delay in its release on Wednesday.
“India rejects these absurd comments on terrorist attacks in Karachi. Pakistan cannot shift the blame on India for its domestic problems,” Anurag Srivastava, the official spokesperson for the ministry of external affairs was quoted by news agency ANI as having said.
The delay in passing the statement at the UN security council is being seen as a message disapproving Pakistan’s continued support for terrorism in the south Asia region.
The UN statement had been written by China on Pakistan’s behalf and it was expected to be timed for release with Pakistan government’s efforts to blame the attack on India, without explicitly saying so in the statement. It was also noted by UN diplomats closely associated with the process, that the statement could have also been an attempt by Pakistan to portray itself as a victim of terrorism instead of being the leading sponsor of terrorism in the region.
On Thursday, the Indian government added that Pakistan needed to revisit its position towards terrorists following Imran Khan’s description of Osama bin Laden as a martyr, during an address in the parliament on June 25.
“We would ask Pakistan that they may wish to reflect on this and on their own government’s position including their PM’s description of a global terrorist as a martyr,” Anurag Srivastava was quoted as saying by ANI.
Imran Khan’s gratuitous reference to the former chief of Al-Qaeda, the global terrorist organization behind 26/11 attacks on the US soil, was widely criticized even in his own country.
“They came into our country and killed Osama Bin Laden, martyred him, all the world criticised us instead.” Imran Khan had said while claiming that despite Pakistan’s cooperation US held it responsible for abetting terrorism.
Laden was killed in a military operation by US Navy Seals in 2011 in Abbottabad in Pakistan.
The last US state department’s annual report on terrorism has accused Pakistan of continuing to be a “safe haven” for terrorist groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Muhammad.
from Indian Defence Research Wing https://ift.tt/3irTvU0
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