NEW DELHI: India on Tuesday strongly criticised Pakistani Defence Minister Khwaja Asif’s remark that Pakistan could go to war over the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, calling it a desperate attempt by Islamabad to deflect attention from its own record.
The response came days after Asif warned that Pakistan would consider war if its water security was threatened. India has maintained that its decision to keep the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance remains unchanged.
Reacting to the comments, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: “Such remarks are desperate attempts by Pakistan to cover up its own failings and divert attention away from its human rights abuses. We categorically reject these fabricated claims with the contempt they deserve.”
Jaiswal also referred to the situation in PoK, describing it “a direct consequence of Pakistan’s decades-long policy of systematic economic exploitation, denial of fundamental rights, and administrative oppression in areas under its illegal occupation.”