Sacrifice of our 18 jawans will not go in vain. We will isolate Pak in the world

One country in Asia is exporting terror everywhere, they want bloodshed

Terrorists should clearly hear out that India will never forget the Uri attack

Leaders of neighbouring country are reading out the script of terrorists

Our soldiers have defeated 17 attempts by fidayeen attackers sent by neighbour

Vibha Sharma

Tribune News Service

Kozhikode, September 24

After the Uri attack, India was anticipating a strong reaction from Prime Minister Narendra Modi against Pakistan. And they got it today here at the Calicut beach where he used the platform of the BJP National Council meeting to take on the neighbouring country.

He said Pakistan was “exporting terror” and India would never forget the sacrifices made by its 18 soldiers.

Labelling Pakistan a “haven of terrorism”, the PM also used the opportunity of a public rally here to “talk” to the people of Pakistan, warning them that their “hukmaran (rulers)” were misguiding them. This was an obvious dig at Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for his speech praising Burhan Wani at the UN General Assembly and his latest diatribe calling Uri a result of the “reaction” of people to the situation in Kashmir.

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Making a comparison between India, “a country of peace, unity and amity which has a bright future”, and Pakistan, “an exporter of terrorists”, the Prime Minister also sought to mark Pakistan in the neighbourhood as a country intent on keeping Asia “blood-soaked and backward”.

The smart balancing act saw him soothe frayed nerves of people demanding strong action against the troublesome neighbour. “The country will never forget the sacrifices made by the 18 bravehearts in Uri. There is anger in the country, let the terrorists know India will never forget the Uri incident,” he said.

And then, speaking directly to the “people of Pakistan”, perhaps a rare attempt by a world leader to engage with the people of another country, he said they should ask their “hukmaran” why when “India is exporting software, they (Pakistan) are exporting terrorists”. Striking a statesman-like posture, Modi said India was willing to go on a war with Pakistan but over social maladies like poverty, unemployment and illiteracy. “Let us wage a war and see who wins it,” he said.

The attempt evoked varied reactions. While many political observers dubbed this as an attempt to “incite” the people of Pakistan, others saw it a smart attempt to show India as one-up, which would also cater to its current circumstances.

As per Modi, the rulers of Pakistan were reading out speeches written by heads of terrorist organisations and “singing the Kashmir song but the day is not far when the people of Pakistan will wage a war against their own leaders”.

“Your leaders, trying to misguide you, talk of waging a war against India for 1,000 years. Let me tell you, the kind of government we have in India, we are ready,” he said.

In an apparent effort to address the criticism that his government has been unable to thwart terrorist incidents, Modi said as many as 17 attempts were made in the last few months to push in terrorists, and the security forces stationed at the border had foiled these, killing more than 110 terrorists.

“Our security forces have fought bravely and saved the country from 17 possible terrorist incidents. In one successful attempt of the neighbouring country, 18 brave men were martyred. If the 17 attempts would have been successful, they could have caused so much destruction,” he said.

Trying to answer questions raised about what action his government was taking, he said India would isolate Pakistan on the global stage. “We will force you to be alone in the world,” he said. Not just India, the entire world held Pakistan responsible for being a haven of terrorism, he said.

Pak calls off key trade exhibition

Islamabad/New Delhi: Pakistan has cancelled a trade exhibition which was scheduled to be held next month in India, amid heightened tension between the two neighbours. The third edition of ‘Aalishaan Pakistan exhibition’ was scheduled to be held in October in New Delhi. The exhibition was meant to promote bilateral trade between the two countries. PTI

Islamabad wants Bugti extradited

Islamabad: Pakistan is to contact Interpol to extradite Baloch leader Brahamdagh Bugti, who is seeking political asylum in India. “The Federal Investigation Agency will send a formal reference to Interpol within a few days for the extradition,” Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali said. His statement came after India said it was examining Bugti’s application for political asylum. The Baloch Republican Party chief visited the Indian consulate in Geneva to inquire about the process of seeking asylum. IANS

QUOTES

Today I am speaking to the people of Pakistan directly. Before 1947, your ancestors used to consider undivided India their land, worshipped it. Please ask your leaders, you have PoK. You cannot manage it. Bangladesh used to be yours, you couldn’t manage it. You cannot manage Gilgit, Baltistan, Pakhtun, Balochistan, Sindh... and you are talking about Kashmir. People of Pakistan must ask their leaders to first give secure lives to their citizens. Ask your leaders, both our countries got freedom together. Why does India export software and your country export terrorists? If you have what it takes, let’s compete to end poverty in our countries. — Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Uri could be ‘reaction’ to Kashmir situation: Sharif

Uri attack can be the reaction of atrocities in Kashmir, as the relatives and near and dear ones of those killed and blinded were hurt and outraged... how could India accuse us just hours after the Uri incident without any inquiry? —Nawaz Sharif, Pak PM