The Shiv Sena on Saturday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government for its stance on Islamabad while objecting to Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa’s remark on Kashmir, reported ANI.
The party in its mouthpiece, Saamana, said Islamabad’s double face has been revealed when, on one hand, Pakistan’s new Prime Minister Imran Khan spoke about peace, and on the other hand, the Army chief asked his troops to “avenge the blood of its soldiers being shed on the border”.
Bajwa made the statement on Thursday while speaking at the Defence and Martyrs Day to commemorate the 1965 and 1971 wars with India, reported Geo News. He also paid a tribute to the Kashmiri brethren for their struggle for right to self-determination.
The Shiv Sena editorial asked if “the man with the 56-inch chest [referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi] would retaliate to the remark made by the Pakistani Army chief”. It further claimed that despite several such remarks, ceasefire violations and terrorist attacks, the Indian government did “nothing except making statements.”
“The Bharatiya Janata Party, which leads the government at the Centre, criticises former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru whenever the issues of China, Pakistan and Kashmir are raised,” the editorial reads. “But even they did not take any step against the neighbouring country.”
Member of Parliament and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said the neighbouring country should have been answered with bullets, reported Financial Express.
Raut said the BJP government will complete five years in power in 2019. “When you [Modi] had asked for votes, you had promised this and we had clapped for you,” he said. “Where did that strength go now? We should deal with Pakistan using bullets and not talks.”
Raut said before the 2014 elections, both BJP and Modi had claimed they would make Pakistan-occupied Kashmir a part of India. “We would like to ask the PM about it,” he said, adding that the prime minister and the defence minister should be asked questions about Pakistan Army chief’s remarks.
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