DNA

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry on Friday strongly condemned Indian Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen. Bipin Rawat’s irresponsible and gratuitous remarks about Pakistan. The Indian CDS’s unabated anti-Pakistan vitriol is reflective both of his completely flawed understanding of Pakistan’s realities as well as his patently politicized approach.

His tirade is also illustrative of the RSS-BJP mindset — a dangerous mix of extremist “Hindutva” ideology and expansionist “Akhand Bharat” designs. It is a sad fact that this mindset has permeated the state institutions of India, including the armed forces.

The Indian CDS’s diatribe against Pakistan cannot divert attention from India’s myriad internal and external wrong-doings. As a consequence of the ‘Hindutva’ policies, religious places in India are regularly desecrated, mob lynchings take place with state complicity, and persecution of minorities and disadvantaged segments grows by the day.

Most notably, state-terrorism against innocent Kashmiris in IIOJK is pursued by India as an instrument of state policy.

Gen. Rawat would be well-advised to focus on his professional domain, rather than continuing to make a career out of anti-Pakistan rhetoric.