Prime Minister Imran Khan has issued a strongly-worded statement in which he warned the world that “Pakistan will have no option but to give a befitting response” to India if it undertakes a “false-flag operation”.
His warning comes in the backdrop of a recent statement by Indian army chief Bipin Rawat that the situation at the restive Line of Control (LoC) can “escalate any time”.
“We (the Indian army) have to be prepared for the spiralling of the escalatory matrix,” Rawat was quoted by Indian media as saying.
Khan’s statement comes as a massive movement in India has taken root in which citizens are galvanising to protest the newly-introduced Citizenship Amendment Act.
The Act makes it easier for non-Muslims from the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan to gain Indian citizenship.
“Over the last five years of (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi’s government, India has been moving towards Hindu Rashtra with its Hindutva Supremacist fascist ideology,” Khan said. “Now with the Citizens Amendment Act, all those Indians who want a pluralist India are beginning to protest and it is becoming a mass movement.”
The prime minister issued a stark reminder of the ongoing “siege” by Indian occupation forces in India-administered Kashmir, saying that “a bloodbath can be expected when it is lifted”.
He said that as the protests in India continue to gain pace, so are the “threats to Pakistan from India”.
“[The] Indian army chief’s statement adds to our concerns of a false-flag operation,” he added.
Khan said that he had warned the international community multiple times, and wished to reiterate that if India launches an operation “to divert attention from its domestic chaos, plus whip up war hysteria to mobilise Hindu nationalism”, Pakistan will be left with no choice but to respond “befittingly”.
Earlier, in response to the Indian army chief’s statement, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) director-general Major-General Asif Ghafoor tweeted: “Provocative statements and preparations for escalation along LoC by Indian COAS (chief of army staff) appear to be an effort, as usual, to divert world attention from widespread protests in India against CAB (the Citizens Amendment Act).
“Pakistan Armed Forces shall befittingly respond to any Indian misadventure or aggression.”
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has also issued a warning that India could carry out any misstep on the LoC in order to divert attention from the protests taking place in the country.
In a statement yesterday, he said that tensions are currently peaking in India, and this is occurring, he added, due to the steps taken by the Modi government.
The minister said that Indians are protesting the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019, not only within India but across the world.
Qureshi said that those who think the Indian government has buried the ideology of a secular India and is imposing Hindu Rashtra and Hindutva philosophy, are taking part in these protests.
The minister said that ceasefire violations along the LoC have increased, and fencing has also been installed at various places along the LoC, and that there has been unusual movement of the Indian military.
Qureshi said that India has committed more than 3,000 ceasefire violations since January this year, and that more than 300 people have been targeted in these violations.
He said that there seemed to be a well thought-out plan to destroy peace in the region.
Qureshi said that India has suppressed the ongoing resistance in Indian-administered Kashmir by way of a communications blackout.
“However, despite its desire, India could not hide the protests taking place across the country because the Indian government cannot impose curfew on entire country,” the minister said. “The world is fully aware what the Modi government is doing.”
He lamented that the world has been silent over this situation, saying that this silence is dangerous and can put peace in the entire region at risk.
The minister thanked the countries, including Malaysia and Turkey, which raised their voices for Kashmiris.
He said that the independent Human Rights Commission of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation has, on Pakistan’s demand, taken notice of the use of pellet guns in Indian-administered Kashmir, and an investigation in this regard has also started.