Amid protests in India, Bilawal Bhutto says 'not afraid of Modi, RSS'

South Asia

Hindustan Times
18 December, 2022, 06:45 pm
Last modified: 18 December, 2022, 06:49 pm

Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto on Saturday said he is not scared of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi or the RSS amid BJP's nationwide protests against Bilawal's personal attack on PM Modi.

He said his comments were based on history and the word that he used for PM Modi is not his invention but was coined by the Indian media, Pakistan's newspaper Dawn reported. "The history is a witness to the role the current Indian prime minister played in Gujarat. No matter how hard the BJP or RSS protests, they cannot distort history." 

Bilawal Bhutto and S Jaishankar exchanged barbs at United Nations over the issue of terrorism in which Bilawal made a personal attack on PM Modi after being schooled by Jaishankar on 'hosting Laden'. Bilawal said Jaishankar is the foreign minister of the RSS which drew its inspiration from Hitler's SS. 

The external affairs ministry issued a strong statement against Pakistan and said Bilawal's 'uncivilised outburst' is a new low even for Pakistan. Pakistan's Foreign Office issued a counter statement and rejected the terrorism charges.

BJP workers demonstrated and burnt Bilawal's effigies across the country on Saturday. Bilawal reacted to the protests and said the protest should not be against him, but against hatred. "We are not afraid of RSS, we are not afraid of Mr Modi. We are not afraid of the BJP. If they want to protest, they should," Bilawal said.

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