Will convey Pahalgam was not one-off incident: Ravi Shankar Prasad
Senior Bharatiya Janata party leader and former union minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad, who is leading a delegation of lawmakers to several European countries including the UK and Italy to talk about Operation Sindoor, said the thrust of their outreach will be on Pakistan's continued support of cross border terrorism.
In an interview to Hindustan Times, before the delegation leaves on the 13-day tour, Prasad spoke about India's enhanced military strength and its precision strikes against terror camps.
Edited excerpts
You are leading the delegation to the UK, France, Germany, European Union, Italy and Denmark to shed light on Operation Sindoor and how it was conceived. What will be the thrust of this outreach?
The essence of our communication will be that we believe in peace and amity, but not at the cost of mayhem and brutal killing of our innocent people. We will also convey that this (the terror attack in Pahalgam on April 22 that provoked Operation Sindoor) is not a one-off instance . It is a matter of global concern that Pakistan today has become a sanctuary for terrorism. Anything that happens anywhere can be traced to Pakistan, whether it was giving asylum to Osama Bin Laden the co-founder of Al Qaeda who masterminded the 9/11 terror attacks or the barbaric killing of (journalist) Daniel Pearl. Pakistan's links can be traced to the multiple terror attacks on Indian soil from Uri, to Pulwama and now Pahalgam.
So, the focus will be on Pakistan's role in fostering terrorism?
After every attack, when it has been conveyed to them that there is a link, the response has always been denial. Even after the recent attack, the link between the establishment and terror networks has been blurred.
We are going with the message that terrorism is the biggest enemy of humanity, of basic human rights. Terrorism is a threat to democracy and is against the human rights of ordinary citizens. Pahalgam is the most striking example of how terrorists killed innocent people with impunity. These people were killed in cold blood after being asked to state their religion; men were massacred in front of their wives and families. It is imperative for the world to know this. We will focus on the scourge of cross border terrorism and how Pakistan cannot tolerate peace and development in Jammu and Kashmir.
You have been part of such an outreach before as well. In 2002, after the terror attack on Indian Parliament, you were part of a delegation that went to South Africa. Do you think there is a change in how the world now perceives India's message about terrorism?
Absolutely. Earlier there was equivalence, justification and validation....now there is a change. Now the primary focus is that peace and amity cannot coexist with the designs of terror groups and their patrons who kill with impunity.
India has been assertive that it carried out precision strikes against terrorist bases and did not hit civilians. Will this reflect in your message as well?
The Indian armed forces have showcased their might, and their technological superiority in being able to carry out clinical, precision strikes. Israel is a small state and has flawless air defence, but India too proved its prowess, protecting the whole area from Bhuj (in Gujarat) to Leh (Ladakh); our systems intercepted Pakistani missiles and protected our people. This also shows that the Narendra Modi government's thrust on ramping up defence spending has borne results, from Akash to Brahmos we have superior technology. Of course, we have also been able to voice our concerns through diplomatic channels about terrorism.
The government has selected lawmakers from across the political spectrum for the outreach, but parties such as the Congress and the TMC have struck a discordant note vis-a-vis the selection of delegates.
I do not want to politicise the issue, but it would have been good if these parties had also reacted in the same way. TMC is the second largest party in Parliament, and it will be good to have them on board.
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