India is hostile due to which Pakistan is very hostile : Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar

Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar has once again stirred controversy by criticising the BJP Govt during his visit to Pakistan

Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar

Lahore (Pakistan) – Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar has once again made headlines by criticising the BJP Government during his visit to Pakistan. Speaking at the session titled ‘Hijr Ki Rakh, Visaal Kay Phool, Indo-Pak affairs’, on the second day of the Faiz Festival at Alhamra in Lahore, he remarked, “If we (India) are friendly, their (Pakistan) behaviour will be very friendly, and if we are hostile, their behaviour will be very hostile.” Aiyar added, “In my experience, Pakistanis probably react more in the other direction.” He also noted, “I was welcomed in Pakistan with more openness than in any other country”. He was in full praise of Pakistani people and terming them as the ‘biggest asset of India’. This is not the first time Aiyar has visited Pakistan and spoken out against the BJP Government.

1. Mani Shankar Aiyar emphasised the necessity of goodwill for Pakistan. However, he pointed out that in the past 10 years since the formation of the Government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, the situation has moved in the opposite direction instead of fostering goodwill.

2. Reflecting on his tenure as the High Commissioner of India in Karachi, Mani Shankar Aiyar shared anecdotes from his experiences in his book ‘Memoirs of a Maverick.’ These incidents shed light on a Pakistan that is distinct from the perceptions many Indians may hold.

Editorial Perspective

The statement by Mani Shankar Aiyar shows his ideological conversion towards Pakistan. He should be told to stay back in Pakistan rather than returning to India.