While interacting with the Indian community in Johannesburg, Sule said that Prime Minister Modi extended a hand of friendship to neighbouring countries in 2014 when he took oath as Prime Minister, but the recent attack has shown that peace efforts have not been respected.
“When PM Modi took oath in 2014, he invited every neighbour to his oath ceremony to send a message that we wanted the subcontinent to be peaceful and happy and to grow together. But, unfortunately, with the Pahalgam incident, it has not happened. This incident has shaken every Indian everywhere in the world. I am happy South Africa has stood by India,” Sule added.
Sule stated that it’s PM Modi’s wish that Operation Sindoor must reach the global stage to show that India will not tolerate terrorism and will always stand for peace without sacrificing innocent lives.
She said, “It was PM Modi’s wish that Operation Sindoor shouldn’t be limited only to India and Pakistan… Pahalgam is the most traumatic and painful experience that we all have been through… A lot of innocent people’s lives have been destroyed. It was an attack on India’s soul. Hence, the truth must be told to the world that we won’t tolerate terrorism. India is a country that has never initiated a war ever; we stand by that. We want peace, but not at the cost of losing our hardworking, innocent souls…”
Highlighting Pakistan’s inaction following the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, BJP MP Anurag Thakur, who is part of the same all-party delegation, stated that the Indian armed forces launched strong retaliatory strikes on nine terror sites.
“When Pakistan didn’t act for 15 days after the Pahalgam terrorist attack, our armed forces did something tremendous. Nine terror sites were attacked, and even they (terrorists) said that – 10 from the family have gone; it would have been better if I had gone too… Pakistan is the only country in the world, with 52 entities and individuals named in the UNSC list, which are affiliated with terrorism; all have links with Pakistan,” Thakur said.
He further added, “In Pahalgam, people were selected based on religion, and then killed in front of their kids and wives. TRF took responsibility for the attack. Pakistan is the country that spreads terrorism in India and the entire world…”
In the same interaction, Congress MP Manish Tewari said terrorism is “pure evil” and must be rooted out globally.
Tewari said India is reaching out to the international community to build consensus against countries that use terrorism as a tool of state policy.
“Terrorism has no religion, terrorism has no other manifestation. Terrorism is a pure evil which has to be exorcised from the body politic of this globe. And that is why, after this horrific attack in Pahalgam, where 26 of our citizens were executed in cold blood, we are reaching out to the global community to create a global consensus against those nations which use terror as an instrument of state policy.” Tewari stated.
Tewari emphasised India’s commitment to a peaceful neighbourhood, saying, “India has always believed in a peaceful neighbourhood. We continue to believe in a peaceful neighbourhood, but we will not and cannot tolerate terrorism, which is being sponsored by Pakistan now going back 45 years.”
An all-party Indian Parliamentary delegation led by Supriya Sule, MP, Lok Sabha, commenced the South Africa engagement on May 27, in Johannesburg, with a community interaction, to reiterate India’s message against terrorism, as per the release.
Indian delegation conveyed India’s zero-tolerance policy towards cross-border terrorism. The delegation shared that Operation Sindoor, conducted by Indian in response, was calibrated, targeted and proportionate, demonstrating India’s commitment to countering terrorism without escalating tensions. They emphasised the need to stop differentiating the terrorists and their backers and dismantle the cross-border terrorism infrastructure, developed and used against India for several decades.
The members of the delegation are Members of Parliament Supriya Sule, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Vikramjeet Singh Sahney, Manish Tewari, Anurag Singh Thakur, Lavu Sri Krishna devarayalu, Anand Sharma, former Minister of Commerce & Industry, V Muraleedharan, Former Minister of State for External Affairs, and Syed Akbaruddin, Former Permanent. Representative of India to the UN.
On Wednesday, the delegation will visit Cape Town for meetings in the South African Parliament and with South Africa’s Ministers of Government. (ANI)
