People like Mamata Banerjee, Rahul Gandhi, Barkha Dutt, Sagarika Ghose, Rajdeep Sardesai, Rana Ayyub and others, in their visceral hatred for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government, have embarrassed the country and shown it in bad light. What's worse, they are being portrayed in Pakistani media as the 'sane' voices who have advocated peace between the two hostile countries.
New Delhi: India's enemies within, who have chosen to speak Pakistan's language over the Pulwama attack and the developments thereafter, are being celebrated in Pakistan. The list includes the likes of 'eminent' authors, journalists and politicians like Shobhaa De, Barkha Dutt, Rajdeep Sardesai, Sagarika Ghose, Sudheendra Kulkarni, Rana Ayyub, Rahul Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Arvind Kejriwal, Mehbooba Mufti, Shah Faesal and others.
These are major thought-influencers, who, in their visceral hatred for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government, have embarrassed the country and shown it in a bad light. What's worse, they are being portrayed in Pakistani media as the 'sane' voices who have advocated peace between the two hostile countries.
Also read: Fight Pakistan but fight India's internal enemies too
This 'Left-liberal', 'secular' section that has gone overboard in praising Imran Khan for 'releasing' Indian Air Force pilot, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, is being shown in Pakistan to form the mainstream of opinion-makers, while the nationalists are being shown as the disruptive fringe elements.
The statements and tweets by these enemies within have given fuel to Pakistan for running propaganda against India and showing the international community that it is Pakistan that wants peace, but India is hell-bent upon waging war. It has given scope to Pakistan to show the world community that voices are getting stronger within India too in favour of shelving all efforts to avenge the Pulwama attack and various terrorist attacks that Pakistan has launched on India over the years.
#MustWatch
— Vivek Agnihotri (@vivekagnihotri) March 2, 2019
BREAKING: Imran Khan’s cabinet ministers have changed their names to Hindoo names.
All India’s hard-core enemies in one video. pic.twitter.com/m8FERUj2VC
Barkha, Sardesai, Mamata and their kind have sought to take the sting out of the decisive military action launched by the Modi government on Pakistan and the terrorists harboured by Pakistan that had become an absolute necessity. They have made Imran a hero, comparing his 'magnanimity' with his charismatic persona that helped Pakistan win the cricket World Cup in 1992. They gave given Imran a chance to turn the current conflict in Pakistan's favour.
Earlier, following the Pulwama attack, Sidhu had called for dialogue with Pakistan even when a suicide bomber of the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) caused the death of nearly 50 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans in Pulwama.
Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, on the other hand, questioned the veracity of the Indian government's statement that around 300 terrorists were eliminated in the Balakot air strikes. She is reported to have said that Prime Minister Modi has gone to war with the motive of garnering votes in the upcoming general elections. Mamata attacking Modi was aired on Pakistani television to show how wrong the Indians themselves felt their government's military action was.
Here is a collection of tweets/statements that have tried to argue that Imran out-manoeuvred Modi in swiftly releasing Wing Commander Varthaman and belittled India's military action. These are being celebrated in Pakistan:
#India: 21 Opposition parties express deep anguish over #Modi's blatant politicization of prevailing security situation https://t.co/zZTimuRovj
— Radio Pakistan (@RadioPakistan) February 28, 2019
I think we should welcome this gesture from @ImranKhanPTI on the release of #Abhinandan. The door for deescalation has been opened. And this is really not the time for dumb and needless gloating by tv anchors
— barkha dutt (@BDUTT) February 28, 2019
We in India may not like this, but in terms of pure optics, @ImranKhanPTI at the moment is winning the day by taking the moral high ground .. we have a strong case on terror but too many of our leaders busy calculating votes at the moment..
— Rajdeep Sardesai (@sardesairajdeep) February 28, 2019
A Nobel Peace Prize to @ImranKhanPTI could drastically change the way Pakistan operates in the South Asia region.
— Shah Faesal (@shahfaesal) March 2, 2019
IK has already raised the bar for leadership in the region, and the Prize could encourage him to further nurture the India-Pak relationship.
He deserves the prize.
With apologies & respect to Modiji, but today he has been outdone and outshone in diplomacy, war strategy and public outreach by a swashbuckling cricket captain @ImranKhanPTI
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) February 28, 2019
All sorts of casualty figures floating around in the Indian media. But almost all independent reportage from Balakot arriving at this conclusion.
— Rana Ayyub (@RanaAyyub) March 1, 2019
'Where Are The Dead Terrorists?': Ask Villagers Near Balakot Who Were Hit By India Air Strikehttps://t.co/D0AYCvO01L
Television channels calling it a strategic victory for PM Modi. What did i miss ?
— Rana Ayyub (@RanaAyyub) February 28, 2019
Sensible words from Imran Khan. This should be followed by the release of Wing Commander Abhinandan with the respect he deserves. Escalating this ain't serving the interests of both the countries. https://t.co/My0xdEsj7m
— Rana Ayyub (@RanaAyyub) February 27, 2019
Modi has demonstrated that Kashmir is potentially a flash-point for nuclear war. Every person, country, and organisation has the right to intervene and do everything in its power to prevent it, writes Arundhati Roy. https://t.co/COexxUXYZA
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) March 1, 2019
I salute you @wasimakramlive, one of the greatest stars in world cricket, for your impassioned appeal
— Sudheendra Kulkarni (@SudheenKulkarni) March 2, 2019
India & #Pakistan shd join hands to fight our common enemy - terrorism.
We shd also cooperate to fight against poverty & for dignified life for all#TogetherWeWin #SayNoToWar https://t.co/eW7wgO6Plz
"We Indians should give credit where credit is due. #Pakistan PM @ImranKhanPTI deserves our appreciation for quick return of Wing Cdr #Abhinandhan. His is indeed a gesture of #Peace.
— Sudheendra Kulkarni (@SudheenKulkarni) March 1, 2019
Now he shd quickly act against terrorist #JeM"
I said on @TimesNow @RShivshankar#SayNoToWar
Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI Sahab:
— Sudheendra Kulkarni (@SudheenKulkarni) February 28, 2019
Please accept my heartfelt kudos. You have proved to be a Man of Peace.
My prayer - Now You and PM @narendramodi ji can, and should, together make it WIN-WIN for both New India and Naya Pakistan.#WelcomeBackAbhinandan#SayNoToWar pic.twitter.com/Pr6We13UKI
Never seen a Pakistani PM so outplay an Indian PM so completely.
— Krishan Partap Singh (@RaisinaSeries) February 28, 2019
The BJP has shown a news clip from a Pakistani news channel where, in the course of an interview over telephone, Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi hit out at India, cashing in on the joint statement of 21 opposition parties.
Qureshi, in the news clip, is heard saying, “What will we get out of all this? But India was desperate to extract a political dividend. Let me tell you, today opposition parties of India issued a joint communiqué where it raised a lot of issues. But what’s most important is that they said BJP was using the Pulwama terror attack to its own political benefit.”
If that wasn’t damning enough, Qureshi charged, “This is for the first time that the opposition parties in India have come out in the open and laid bare the truth of India”.
Twenty-one Indian political parties in a joint statement on Wednesday said, “The meeting of 21 parties expressed their deep anguish over the blatant politicisation of the sacrifices made by our armed forces by leaders of the ruling party. National security must transcend narrow political considerations and uphold the unity and integrity of our country.”
The statement alleged further, “The leaders observed that the Prime Minister has, regrettably, not convened an all-party meeting as per established practice in our democracy.”
IAF fighter pilots went deep inside Pakistan and bombed a terror camp in Balakot, which was run by Jaish-e-Mohammed. India’s external affairs ministry said it was a “pre-emptive attack” as well as India’s response to the dastardly suicide bombing in Pulwama on February 14 that claimed the lives of nearly 50 CRPF jawans. According to reports, Wing Commander Varthaman was part of India's military action in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and took down a sophisticated Pakistani F-16 jet, while flying a MiG-21 Bison. The Pulwama terrorist attack was the biggest on the Indian security forces in Jammu and Kashmir.
Last Updated Mar 3, 2019, 4:49 PM IST