Uri terror attack: India, Kabul may boycott Saarc summit to isolate Pakistan
New Delhi: India’s call of ‘isolate Pakistan’ got a major push on Tuesday when Afghan envoy Shaida Mohammad Abdali said that time has come for countries of the region to join hands in “singling out” Pakistan for spoiling regional peace and stability through terror, and possible boycott of upcoming Saarc Summit in Islamabad should be weighed.
Calling for regional unity in sending out a strong message to Islamabad, he said terrorism being unleashed has become lethal and systematic as it is state-sponsored and that there should be zero tolerance to it.
Asked whether India, Afghanistan and Bangladesh join hands to boycott the SAARC Summit in Islamabad in November, he said there must be a comprehensive effort by countries of the region and that most of them share views of India and Afghanistan.
“We have to make sure that we bring the maximum number of countries and I am sure most of the countries in South Asia are in line with what Afghanistan and India think. Therefore, the effort should be a comprehensive one and one which should include as many (countries) as possible,” he told a TV channel. The Afghan envoy said time has come to “single out” the country that spoils unity and regional stability and peace.
“Definitely we should single a country that spoils our unity and spoils regional stability and peace and that stops integration and connectivity.” Earlier in the day, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani called up Prime Minister Narendra Modi and condemned the “cross border attack” in Uri and expressed solidarity with India to eliminate the threat of terrorism.
“There must be zero tolerance (towards terrorism). We have seen the signs of terrorism becoming much more lethal and becoming very systematic. This is a state-sponsored terrorism. It is no more a issue of non-state actors that we have been hearing for a long time.
Meanwhile, amidst the ongoing hostility over terror attack in Uri, Pakistan has decided not to send its Intelligence chief to India to attend a conference of top security experts of Saarc countries beginning Thursday.
Director General of Intelligence Bureau of Pakistan Aftab Sultan will not attend the meeting and that country will be represented by an official of the Pakistan High Commission, a Home Ministry official said.
Wife returns Bihar aid
In a huge setback to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, martyred soldier Havildar Ashok Kumar Singh’s wife refused to accept Rs 5 Lakh as compensation which was announced by the state government. Sangeeta Devi widow of Havildar Ashok Kumar Singh while terming the amount as “disrespectful for soldiers who die for their country” said “Was my husband a drunkard who died in a drain after consuming liquor? We cannot accept this money, we are not beggars”.
