Senior Congress leader and MP from Gurdaspur Manish Tewari has snubbed Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu for his suggestions to open the India-Pakistan border in Punjab to increase trade and friendship between India and Pakistan. Tewari said that it was futile to hold any trade talks with Pakistan when Pakistan is involved in anti-India activities like cross border terrorism.
Manish Tewari on Sunday said that it is “useless and futile” to hold any trade-related talks with Pakistan until the country stops its anti-India activities. Speaking to ANI, the Lok Sabha MP said, “Until Pakistan stops sending terrorists to India and dropping drugs and weapons in our areas via drones, it is useless and futile to hold any trade-related talks with Pakistan.”
Tewari’s comment came a day after Sidhu had advocated for opening the Attari border for cross-border trade relations. Sidhu said this while speaking to the media in Amritsar on December 4. The most dangerous aspect of the pro-Pakistani rant of Sidhu was that he had referred to Pakistani infiltrators (smugglers, criminals, terrorists, spies etc) as naughty elements who will keep coming to India through the porous borders. Hence, “why not open it, so that trade becomes possible and prosperity comes,” he said.
Battling for the India Pakistan friendship and trade, he said that Punjab has suffered huge loss due to stalled trade between India and Pakistan.
“If the Karachi border is open, why can’t they open Attari border for business? If the central government opens this, then it will boost the economy of Punjab,” Sidhu said.
He pointed out how former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had started Aman Eman Bus Sewa from India to Pakistan to increase friendship.
Sidhu under the pretext of outlining his economic visions for Punjab paddled the agenda of Pakistan even to the extent of ignoring infiltration and Pakistan’s increased subversive activities in Punjab in the recent months.
Sidhu, who had referred Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan bada bhai (elder brother) and hugged Pakistani Army General Qamar Bajwa, keeps speaking for the other side of the border.
While the Congress high command is silent over Sidhu’s pro-Pakistani tune, party leader Manish Tewari has slammed him, which he had done earlier also.
When Sidhu had praised Imran Khan as elder brother, Tewari had termed Imran Khan as a cat’s paw of Pak deep State ISI-Military combine. Imran Khan “maybe anybody’s elder brother but for India he is that cat’s paw of Pak Deep State ISI-Military combine that drones arms & narcotics into Punjab & sends terrorists on a daily basis across LOC in J&K. Have we forgotten martyrdom of our soldiers in Poonch so soon?”, Tewari had said.