“Non-state actors are coming from territory under Pakistan’s control. Pakistan in 2004, had agreed that it will not allow its territory to be used by forces inimical to India but it has failed,” says Indian President. PHOTO: AFP/ FILE
NEW DELHI/ ISLAMABAD:
Indian President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday accused Pakistan of slipping into the dangerous orbit of terrorism and called upon the neighbouring country to stop the export of state-sponsored terrorism to India.
“Terrorist activities must be curbed. And state-sponsored terrorism can never be accepted,” Mukherjee said.
The Indian leader’s remarks came in an interview with Euronews ahead of his visit to Belgium. “Therefore, we have repeatedly been asking (Pakistan) to dismantle the terrorist outfits which are located in their area,” he said.
The Indian president also refuted Pakistan’s claims that it has nothing to do with the militants. “These non-state actors are not coming from the heavens. Non-state actors are coming from territory under Pakistan’s control. Pakistan in 2004, had agreed that it will not allow its territory to be used by forces inimical to India but it has failed”.
Referring to the recent spate of violence on the Line of Control, Mukherjee said that the Indian prime minister in his address to the UN General Assembly extended a hand of cooperation to Pakistan. “The Indian prime minister pointed out that India is ready to cooperate with Pakistan for the restoration of peace, normalcy, and to solve all outstanding issues including the problem of Jammu and Kashmir, through bilateral discussions,” he said in the interview.
“The Shimla agreement which was signed between the then prime minister Indira Gandhi and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto ceded all the occupied territories which Indian Army during the war captured. Ninety-one thousand imprisoned soldiers, prisoners of war, were returned,” he said, adding that the move was to promote goodwill between the nations. “We wanted to prove that in our basic foreign policy we do not have any territorial ambition, we do not have any ambition to export our ideology to any country, we do not have any commercial interests,” Mukherjee emphasised.
“One can change one’s friends but not one’s neighbours and therefore India wants to have good relations with Pakistan,” said the Indian president.
Mukherjee assured that the Indian government was on good terms with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif but in the same breath made it clear that India would not compromise on its territorial integrity.
Nations need to work together: FO
Pakistan’s Foreign Office condemned on Friday terrorism in any form and said that nations had to work together to eliminate militancy.
“Nations need to work together to defeat this common enemy,” said foreign ministry spokesperson Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry in response to Mukherjee’s interview.
Indian Army shelling kills toddler
Pakistani authorities on Friday accused the Indian Army of cross-border shelling that killed a toddler and wounded five other civilians in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.
“A two-year-old boy who was wounded in shelling by Indian troops has died at hospital, while five other wounded persons in Kotli district are still under treatment,” Masood-ur-Rehman, local administration official, told AFP.
He said that three women and two men were also injured in the cross-border shelling in village of Rud Karthar on the Line of Control in Kotli district.
A Pakistani military official also confirmed the death and injuries to the civilians, saying they were the result of mortar shelling by the Indian forces.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 5th, 2013.
COMMENTS (24)
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It is an acceptable, all the nations move forward with unbreakable consensus to root out the menace of rerrorism, but it is an admitted fact that United States and India do no more except the safety of their particular interests.
Shimla agreement signed in between the two premiers says, Kashire is disputed and will solved through negotiations.
but Indian leadership in the words as follows, Kashmire is essential part of India and the same can not be discussed.
What they are saying and doing,there is remarkable distance in saying and doing.
More than sixty thousand Kashmiries has been killed by Indian forces despite of all attrocities they are claiming they want to solve this longstanding issue peacefully.
United nations's resolutions passed in the favoure of Kashmiry peaople has totally been ignored and declared Kashmire as indispensable part of India not strang, policy based on hypocrisy has been adopted since long and the same is going on.
He is rightly saying that These non-state actors are not coming from the heavens. they are not coming from the heaven. they are creators of counterproductive and the secret jand aid,what is meangs of counter productive please consider it properly then you come to the conclusion that where from not state actors comes.
Evidence,has been uncovered,India is involved in the unrest going on in Baluchistan province,Pakistan's primier raised this issue during the discussion with Singh, but on the contrary being said, “Terrorist activities must be curbed. And state-sponsored terrorism can never be accepted. Pakistan is facing the terrorism not sponsored,it has sponsored by secret indian aid ,drones attacks and Afghanistan's ground situation.
Wrong,absolutely wrong to say Pakistan is epicenter of terrorism and exporting insurgency in India,baseless allegation has been leveled by the Indiam president which has no proof.
In fact, India is stooge of the power and dancing on its indication,Violation on the line of controll aviod to having negotiaion and differen allegation being imposed on Pakistan , to described it as epicenter of terrorism is part of the policy as given by the power.
Reality of the day, some concerned quarters don't want sucess of negotiation with Taliban so they are busy in hatching conspiracies to sabotaging peace processand India is essential part of the efforts.
@ModiFied: May be India and Afghanistan will have no option but to join hands to fight this menace together post 2014.
Well you can say goodbye to your India then as Pakistani nuclear warheads will wipe out your country. We'll go down but we'll take you with us. Enjoy the show. As for Afghanistan, pot calling the kettle black. That country has little credibility. I'd be more worried about your own neighbourhood, where all your neighbours see you as a nuisance.
Blah...blah...blah...we hear the same thing over and over.... When will it be realized as long as Pakiland exists terrorism will never desist?
May i ask what your arms doing in MQM office sector 178. Is it your birth right to interfere in other countries and why have you set up dozens of consulates in Afghanistan bordering Pakistan. Daily shelling of villages in Pakistan is not this interference.Well to every action their is always a reaction do not forget this someday you will repent your acts.
it has kinda become a fashion to bash pakistan again and again and best thing is that the nation has grown so coward overtime that all it can afford saying after bashing is : we want peace :)
I dnt think kashmir can be solved by any other means other than a war. Lets come out in the open and get our armed forces to fight each other. the one who wins gets Kashmir. And its likely, that not only will India retain its controlled kashmir, pakistan will end up losing the one in it administers too..
@aqib: Just like we are distributing roses in Baluchistan and FATA in the name of 'war on terror'...First set your own things right before blaming others...!!
@hello modified Afghanistan yeah right where this all terrorism started accusing pakistan of sponsoring terrorism and mister come out of your modi fever and look around no country in the world agree with your PM or President statement except India itself and that country which give birth to this terrorism namely Afghanistan. yeah go on join hands after all terrorists do join hands when they know they are about to be taught a lesson.
@lalaki you indian never want to accept your mistake and as you said epicenter of terrorism well apart from india which country in the world agree with your PM and President statement let me tell you non and as for Americans they want to keep the indian happy and gave them lollipop because if they agreed with your statement they have branded Pakistan a terrorist State. ohhhh sorry they didn't bad for india. India is the main hub for terrorism in the south asia region and secondly india let me tell u bitter truth no country in south Asia loves you or consider you as friendly country. China, sri lanka, bangladesh, and Mymmar and many more. And secondly most of this terrorism comes from India and their sponsor is RAW and don't forget the terrorism your army did in kashmire and in Naxal areas and still is doing it.
Clear crisp and to the point message which Mr. Manmohan Singh failed to deliver in UN.
The President is completely wrong about Pakistan exporting terrorism - Pakistan does not export anything.
WHats new in this...whole world knows pakistan as an epicenter of terrorism...from where does faisal shazad came from...from where does the daughter of pakistan came from..from where was osama found...and more importantly from where WILL alyman al jawahiri be found.....
Kashmir is for Kashmiris alone, and not the property of any Indian. Kashmir has been a disputed territory since India's invasion and forced accession under duress of a British puppet and despot in 1947. Kashmir's 95% Muslim majority population was denied its right to join Pakistan. 66 years and several UN resolutions later India still does not acknowledge its rape, torture, and genocide against Kashmiris. If the UN, India, the US, or any other power doesn't bring this situation to an end. Soon, you will face a massive revolution for freedom which has begun. Kashmiris have been patient enough, it is time for action. Kashmir will be Pakistan, In sha Allah ta'ala.
Meanwhile the Indian army has been distributing roses in Kashmir, for the last 25 years.
They have the audacity to blame Pakistan day in and day out but don't want to look into their own terrorism, they have been terrorizing the people of Kashmir for decades, their security service has killed more than 100,000 Kashmiris in the last 10 years and let us not forget the rapes of Kashmiri women by these so called security personal. Beside terrorizing the people of Kashmir, they are doing the same in Assam. Why are they so afraid of the world press community to visit freely in Kashmir and Assam to ask the people whether they have been terrorized by the State of India, let us find out their opinion. What Indian leadership is doing is to divert attention from their own terror tactics and the subjugation of people of Kashmir and Assam, just ask the loved ones of those who has been killed, maimed and raped by the Indian security services if it is terrorism or not and if they are the victims of State Terrorism.
Simple plain truth told by Indian president in plain language. First it was Indian PM in UN and now Indian president repeating the same. India, Afghanistan and rest of the world also believe that Pakistan is the epicenter of international terrorism. May be India and Afghanistan will have no option but to join hands to fight this menace together post 2014.