The BJP launched a sharp attack on the erstwhile Congress-led government after an explosive claim linked to former PM Manmohan Singh by Kashmiri separatist Yasin Malik. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi on Friday claimed that Malik shook hands with Manmohan Singh, earlier visited the Prime Minister’s residence and “was fed biryani” there.
The BJP leader’s comments came after Yasin Malik told the Delhi High Court that former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had thanked him for taking the time and effort to meet Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) founder Hafiz Saeed in Pakistan.
“They (Former PM Manmohan Singh) had handshakes with Yasin Malik… They had come into contact even earlier… What was their approach?” Pralhad Joshi asked, further adding, “Earlier, he (Malik) used to go to the Prime Minister’s residence and he was fed biryani… That’s why people despise them.”
Pralhad Joshi also drew parallels between the approach of the Congress-led government and the current NDA-led government towards tackling terrorism.
“Why has terrorist activity decreased in the country today? Because our approach is very clear. We don’t tolerate this nonsense, even if they are based in Pakistan or anywhere… So, as the Prime Minister, the Home Minister, and the Defence Minister have repeatedly said, ‘Ghus ke Marenge’,” Joshi told reporters.
In an affidavit submitted to the Delhi High Court, Yasin Malik made some big claims, including being thanked by Manmohan Singh for meeting Hafiz Saeed in Pakistan.
Malik stated that in 2006 he travelled to Pakistan at a specific request to meet Hafiz Saeed and other militants. He added that upon returning to India, he briefed Manmohan Singh about the visit.
“He [Manmohan Singh] conveyed his gratitude to me for my efforts, time, patience and dedication. But as luck would have it, this meeting of mine with Hafiz Saeed and other militant leaders of Pakistan which was initiated and executed only on the request of special director IB VK Joshi, was portrayed in a different context against me,” Yasin Malik wrote in the affidavit.
The affidavit, submitted in the Delhi High Court on August 25, outlined his purported interactions with former PMs, Union ministers, foreign diplomats, senior Intelligence Bureau (IB) officials, and others associated with the central government’s peace efforts in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).
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