Imran had called for global intervention to de-escalate tension between India and Pakistan

NEW DELHI: As Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan used cricket analogy to slam India, New Delhi hit back saying his comments reflected frustration as the world had seen through Islamabad’s duplicity.

“When I was playing cricket, India was seven times our size but we regularly quashed them. In hockey and so many other games also. We were great,” Khan said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

New Delhi hit back at Khan, with Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar saying that the Pakistan PM’s comments were not only “factually incorrect and contradictory” but also showed a “growing sense of frustration”.

“Pakistan has to realise that the global community has seen through this double standards to play the victim card in their fight against terror. They have to take credible, irreversible and verifiable action against terror groups operating from its soil rather than making misleading and alarmist statements to divert the attention of the international community,” he said.

Imran had called for global intervention to de-escalate tension between India and Pakistan. He also claimed that there were no terror groups left in his country and some terror outfits were operating from Afghanistan.

At the UN, too, India took Pakistan to task for seeking global intervention on Kashmir. Deputy Permanent Representative at the UN, K Nagaraj Naidu, saying, “Just like a fish takes to water, one delegation has again taken to hate speech. Every time this delegation speaks, it spews venom and false narratives of monumental proportions. It is extremely surprising that a country that has completely decimated its minority population talks about protecting minorities. Pakistan’s practice of using false pretenses to distract from addressing the malaise that afflicts it has run its course.” He was speaking at a session of UN General Assembly.

Naidu’s remarks came after Counsellor at the Pakistan Mission to the UN Saad Ahmed Warraich raked up the issue saying, “No other situation reflects the abdication of the UN’s responsibility to discharge its responsibilities more than the decades-old Jammu and Kashmir issue.”

In response, the Indian diplomat said that Pakistan needs to reflect that there are no takers for its false rhetoric and should get down to its normal business of diplomacy.

“Pakistan indulges in confabulations and obfuscates the international community from the truth instead of putting an end to the bellicose and vitriolic diatribe and taking steps to restore normal ties,” he said.

In Delhi, the MEA spokesperson also snubbed US President Donald Trump’s latest offer of “help” on Kashmir issue. 

“We have seen President Trump’s remarks. Our position on the Kashmir issue has been clear and consistent...that there is no role for any third party in this,” he said.