New low for Pakistan: MEA slams Bilawal Zardari Bhutto's remarks on PM Modi

New Delhi, December 16

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Union Ministers Anurag Thakur and Meenakshi Lekhi assailed Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Zardari Bhutto’s remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “nefarious, uncivilised and shameful”.

Unchanged since ’71

The Pakistani minister has obviously forgotten this day in 1971. Unfortunately, Pakistan does not seem to have changed much in the treatment of its minorities. Arindam Bagchi, MEA Spokesperson

A demonstration was also held at the Pakistan High Commission here following exchanges between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Bilawal at the UNSC in New York on Wednesday.

Bilawal had said, “Osama bin Laden is dead, but the butcher of Gujarat is alive.” He was reacting to Jaishankar’s comment at a UNSC debate that “hosts of Osama and attackers of a neighbour’s Parliament have no right to preach”.

“These comments are a new low, even for Pakistan. He has obviously forgotten this day in 1971. Unfortunately, Pakistan does not seem to have changed much in the treatment of its minorities. It certainly lacks credentials to cast aspersions at India,” said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

Bangladesh celebrates December 16 as Victory Day (Vijay Diwas by India) to commemorate the surrender of the Pakistani army in Dhaka.

BJP’s foreign affairs department head Vijay Chauthaiwale said no one took Bilawal’s comments seriously even in Pakistan.

Thakur made the same point about 1971 and said “the world is aware of Pakistan’s antics and plans”. “It would have been better for Pakistan’s half-educated Foreign Minister to get all information about his country, how many times Pakistan has been on the FATF list and how many terrorist incidents it was involved in,” said Lekhi.