Clear air on K-mediation by US, Cong asks Centre
Calling Kashmir an “issue” between India and Pakistan, the Congress today said no third party should be allowed to interfere in it as it amounted to internationalising the matter.
“No third-party mediation will be accepted. It (Kashmir) is an issue between India and Pakistan. There are attempts to hyphenate India and Pakistan once again,” Congress leader Sachin Pilot said.
Addressing reporters, he raised questions over the ceasefire announced between India and Pakistan by US President Donald Trump through a social media post, which was later verified by both countries.
“The government should put it before the nation since it is a bilateral issue. Did the government accept this mediation? What are the conditions India has agreed to,” he said, while questioning the mention of talks between India and Pakistan at a neutral site by Trump on his social media account.
He also expressed surprise over Trump referring to Kashmir as a 1,000-year-old issue. “There has also been the IMF bailout to Pakistan. And then the Washington ceasefire raises questions,” he said.
He said the government should call an all-party meeting and a special Parliament session to clarify under what circumstances the ceasefire was accepted by the government.
The senior Congress leader also expressed his sympathies with the bereaved families who lost their kin in the cross-border shelling by Pakistan.
He appreciated the valour of the armed forces, saying “our forces have shown in the past few days that they are second to none”.
Referring to the 1994 resolution adopted by Parliament in which the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir was sought to be taken back, Pilot said, “This is the time to implement it again.”
He said the government got unprecedented and unwavering support after the Pahalgam terror attack from the Opposition to launch a crackdown against the terror infrastructure in Pakistan, saying, “The attack was on the soul of India.”
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