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United Nations (United States) (AFP)
India and Pakistan clashed Friday at the United Nations as Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan accused the rival of a “reign of terror” over Muslims, drawing severe criticism.
Even for Pakistan, which regularly lashes out at India in front of the world organization, Khan’s speech at the annual summit was surprisingly charged as he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of a plan to “purge India of Muslims. “.
“The worst and most ubiquitous form of Islamophobia now reigns over India,” Khan said in a speech, delivered via video due to Covid precautions.
“The hate-filled Hindutva ideology propagated by the fascist RSS-BJP regime has unleashed a reign of fear and violence against India’s 200 million Muslims,†he said.
Khan was referring to Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party and affiliate Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a century-old Hindu revivalist movement with a paramilitary component.
Under Modi, India repealed the statehood of Kashmir, its only Muslim-majority region, passed a citizenship law that critics called discriminatory, and witnessed repeated outbreaks of religious violence.
Speaking on the day Modi was on his way to the White House, Khan – who has yet to speak to President Joe Biden – alleged that business interests with India’s more than $ 1 billion allowed him to “get away with it.” shoot human rights violations with impunity â€.
While India often ignores Pakistan’s statements to the world forum, a young Indian diplomat on the ground exercised the right to respond to Khan.
Sneha Dubey, first secretary of India’s UN mission, accused Pakistan of harboring and glorifying al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden, who was killed by US special forces in a raid in 2011 in the military city of Abbottabad.
“This is the country that is an arsonist disguising himself as a shootout,†she said.
“Pakistan is feeding terrorists in its backyard in the hope that they will only harm their neighbors.
She highlighted violence against minorities in Pakistan as well as its “religious and cultural genocide” in 1971 as Bangladesh gained independence.
“Unlike Pakistan, India is a pluralistic democracy with a large population of minorities who have held the highest positions in the country,†Dubey said.
His response sparked another response as Pakistani diplomat Saima Saleem challenged Dubey’s claim that Kashmir, which is partially controlled by Islamabad, is an internal problem.
© 2021 AFP
