India hits back at Imran Khan for UNGA ‘hate speech’

United Nations: India has hit back at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s UNGA address, saying his speech bordered on crudeness and while Islamabad has “ventured to upstream terrorism and downstream hate speech, New Delhi was going ahead with mainstreaming development in Jammu and Kashmir”. Using strong words, Vidisha Maitra, First Secretary Ministry of External Affairs, exercising India’s right of reply to Khan’s speech, said on Friday night: “Rarely has the General Assembly witnessed such misuse, rather abuse, of an opportunity to reflect.” She said the choice of Khan’s words to attack India, like “pogrom”, “bloodbath”, “racial superiority”, “pick up the gun” and “fight to the end”, reflected a “medieval mindset and not a 21st Century vision”. She said Pakistan’s “virulent reaction to the removal of an outdated and temporary provision (Article 370) that was hindering development and integration of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir stems from the fact that those who thrive on conflict never welcome the ray of peace”.

“While Pakistan has ventured to upstream terrorism and downstream hate speech there, India is going ahead with mainstreaming development in Jammu and Kashmir. “The mainstreaming of Jammu and Kashmir, as well as Ladakh, in India’s thriving and vibrant democracy with a millennia-old heritage of diversity, pluralism and tolerance is well and truly underway. Irreversibly so. “Citizens of India do not need anyone else to speak on their behalf, least of all those who have built an industry of terrorism from the ideology of hate,” she added. Maitra added that Khan’s “threat of unleashing nuclear devastation qualifies as brinksmanship, not statesmanship”. “Every word spoken from the podium of this August Assembly, it is believed, carries the weight of history. Unfortunately, what we heard today from Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan was a callous portrayal of the world in binary terms. Us vs Them; Rich vs Poor; North vs South; Developed Vs Developing; Muslims vs Others. “A script that fosters divisiveness at the UN. Attempts to sharpen differences and stir up hatred, are simply put - ‘hate speech’.” (IANS)

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