India asks Pakistan to see ‘new reality’

New Delhi/Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday accused India of creating a “war-like” situation similar to the developments following the Pulwama terror attack, even as New Delhi asked Islamabad to “see the new reality” following recent developments in J&K.

According to news agency reports from Islamabad, the Pakistani PM, talking to a select group of senior Pakistani journalists on Thursday, claimed that India may stage a “false flag operation”. “The threat is very real. We will have to respond to such a scenario and this is how we have seen wars starting between nations,” he was quoted as saying by a Pakistani newspaper.

Hitting out at Islamabad meanwhile, the MEA said there is a “feeling that Pakistan is nervous” that welfare of the people of J&K will nullify its justification for cross-border terrorism and it (Pakistan) will not be able to mislead people anymore. “It is time for Pakistan to accept the reality... It is time for Pakistan to see the new reality,” MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said on Friday, adding that “food supplies are normal in the valley, there is no violence and all newspapers are being published”.

Asked about Pakistan’s recent announcements including downgrading of diplomatic ties with India and other measures, the MEA spokesperson said, “It was a unilateral move by Pakistan. It was done without consulting us. We have regretted the steps they have announced. They (Pakistan) are trying to present an alarming picture,” the MEA spokesperson said.

Apart from New Delhi briefing foreign envoys at home, Indian envoys abroad in certain countries had also explained New Delhi’s stand on recent J&K developments to those nations, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) said on Friday, adding that external affairs minister S. Jaishankar had also reached out personally to foreign nations on the matter. The MEA also said India’s relationship with Islamic countries has also been “enhanced” in the past five years through diplomatic efforts which resulted in “greater understanding” and “greater appreciation” of India’s position on the Kashmir issue.

The MEA Spokesperson also said that the developments in J&K were India’s internal matter and that these matters are under Indian “sovereign jurisdiction”. On the situation in J&K, he said, “The Prime Minister has mentioned that the situation will return to normal. The inconvenience is temporary in nature.” He also said that PM Modi had put forward a “positive vision” for J&K.