ISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan People’s Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari gave a clear message to India not to mistake our restraint for weakness as the Pakistan Armed Forces are vigilant, resolute and prepared.
“Our skies are guarded, our borders are sealed by valour. Our nation stands united from Karachi to Khyber and from Lahore to Larkana. The sword we wield is only drawn when peace is threatened, but when drawn, it does not miss,” he said while speaking in the National Assembly on Tuesday.
Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, in his address at the National Assembly, said that this nation was not born of fear, it was born of struggle.
In recent days, he said the Government of India has unleashed a torrent of accusations following a heinous act in Occupied Kashmir. “Let me make this solemn declaration before the people of Pakistan and the world: Pakistan had no hand in that crime. We do not export terror, we are the victims of terrorism,” he said.
Bilawal said India must remember that terrorism cannot be defeated by tanks alone; it must be defeated by justice. He said if they wish to end violence in Kashmir then let the people speak, let there be a plebiscite, not persecution. He said Kashmir is not India’s territory, it is a promise broken, a wound festering and a people waiting. The prime minister’s challenge to India for an impartial investigation is a start.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said India’s suspension of the Indus Water Treaty is a crime against humanity, politicisation of water and criminalisation of nature. “What madness is this, that you would threaten the food and livelihood of millions for a grievance that lies within your borders. “Long before Delhi rose, before empires were carved and borders drawn, there stood Moenjodaro and Harappa,” he said.
He said Indus runs through our blood. “Indus is not theirs to command,” he said. Pakistan will defend that river for its own sake and the memory of a civilisation that predates this bitterness. “To weaponise the Indus is to betray our shared past. Let it be known, you can divert rivers, but you cannot drown our will with the blessing of Allah Almighty.”
Bilawal told the people of Pakistan not to despair; it is a time for resolve. He said our enemies hope to fracture us, but we must stand as one. Let us remind the world that Pakistan is not a footnote in South Asia. We are not the accused, we are the aggrieved.
While taking part in the National Assembly debate, Minister for Information Attaullah Tarar said Pakistan handed India a crushing defeat on the diplomatic front and information warfare while foiling conspiracies of the “Butcher of Gujrat”.
“The defeat suffered by India on the diplomatic front will be remembered for generations,” Tarar said. “On one hand the brave Pakistani nation is ready to give befitting response to the adversary’s misadventure and on the other hand the Indian people are now questioning the Modi regime as why security was not provided to tourists and what 0.9 million army personnel are doing in IIOJK,” the minister said.
“We offered an independent inquiry into the Pahalgam incident putting India diplomatically under pressure,” Tarar said, adding after failure on all fronts and losing all the options, India was now looking for an opportunity to attack Pakistan.
The minister also paid tributes to the Sikh community all over the world for categorically announcing that they would not fight against Pakistan, adding India was involved in killing Sikh leaders. He said political differences should not arise when it comes to the national interests, the country’s defence and foreign policy.
Responding to a point of order from opposition leader Omar Ayub, Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq asserted his authority to expunge anything he deems to be against the national interest. Earlier, Omar Ayub raised the issue of censorship in the House, saying his speech as opposition leader was not live-streamed and was censored.
Taking part in the debate, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s veteran parliamentarian Dr Farooq Sattar said the Indian government should admit its intelligence failure in the Pahalgam incident instead of shifting the blame to Pakistan. He further said India could not unilaterally withdraw from the Indus Waters Treaty, adding, “It is rather a declaration of water war against Pakistan,” he said.
Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Asad Qaisar of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf opined that Pakistan should move the International Court of Justice against the unilateral suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.
