Islamabad may terminate Simla Agreement: Pak minister amid tensions with India
India's actions against Pakistan have resulted in the Simla Agreement losing its sanctity, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Thursday.Asif, known for shooting his mouth, made the remarks to Geo News.The Pakistani Defence Minister has made several inconsistent statements in the last few weeks following the Pahalgam terror attack.
"The agreement was bilateral as no third party or the World Bank was involved," Asif told the channel.advertisementThe Pakistani Defence Minister also indicated that Islamabad could consider terminating the Simla Agreement and that in such a situation the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan will become a "ceasefire line".Following India's punitive measures against Pakistan after the Pahalgam terror attack, Pakistan had only threatened to terminate the Simla Agreement. But there was no subsequent move to cancel the historic pact.The Simla Agreement was signed after the 1971 war between the two countries and lays down principles meant to govern bilateral relations.Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated after the Pahalgam terror attack, with India carrying out precision strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir on May 7. Pakistan attempted to attack Indian military bases on May 8, 9 and 10. The Indian side responded strongly to the Pakistani actions.The hostilities between the two sides ended with an understanding of stopping military actions following talks between the directors general of military operations of both sides on May 10.Tune InTrending Reel
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Indian Express
25 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Ravi Shankar Prasad at Idea Exchange: ‘No leader can dare to impose an Emergency. That's the biggest positive consequence of that struggle'
Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad looks back at the Emergency 50 years later, the institutional guardrails that ensure it does not happen again and the upcomig Bihar elections. The conversation was moderated by Liz Mathew, Deputy Editor, The Indian Express. Liz Mathew: How do you look back at the Emergency 50 years later? The Emergency was the darkest chapter of India's independent history. The whole country was turned into a prison. I was an intermediate student when the JP (Jayaprakash Narayan) movement started and we became big leaders in the Bihar student movement. Mrs Gandhi was losing her appeal, there was an economic downturn, price rise, and corruption. This is when the movement gathered steam. In Bihar, torture began before the Emergency. I was arrested under MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act) in front of my house. Ten policemen jumped over me in the dead of night while I was going on a tour to Bhabua. I suffered an injury and was put in jail. Mrs Gandhi was becoming an authoritarian. And then her election was set aside by the Allahabad High Court. The brave judge Jagmohanlal Sinha, who never had any limelight, was a pre-collegium appointee. And thereafter, Emergency was imposed in the dead of the night. In that dark period, there was one light of hope, The Indian Express and Ramnath Goenkaji. Every attempt was made to take over The Indian Express by sinister means. I was underground during the Emergency and I have seen the torture from close quarters. JP once told us that he was arrested in the same guest house in Haryana, where he saw Morarji Desai walking in the garden. JP's kidney was seriously damaged and he was shifted to Jaslok hospital. When his condition became critical, he came to Patna. God saved him because he had to save the democracy of India. Dev Kant Barooah was the president of the Congress party. He coined the expression, 'Indira is India and India is Indira'. Sycophancy was at its extreme. The Supreme Court failed us shockingly. Nine High Courts of India quoted a detention order as arbitrary. When the matter went to the Supreme Court, it was reversed. One judge asked Niren De, the then Attorney General, if a detainee was shot inside the jail, would he have any remedy? He said, 'no, he has no remedy'. That argument was effectively upheld by the court. It was a shameful moment for the Indian judiciary. There was one brave judge, Hans Raj Khanna, who gave a dissenting judgment. And he was denied the post of the key justice for two months and was superseded. These are very emotional moments. Being under JP has been one of the most extraordinary experiences of my life. He was a great leader, a great freedom fighter. He scaled the 30-foot wall of Hazaribagh Jail and ran away. He struggled, was tortured, and arrested at the Nepal border. Nehruji liked him. He offered him to join the government and become the deputy prime minister. He said, no, I will work for Sarvodaya and Bhoodan. In 1977, when BJP won, all because of him, he could have been the PM, but he said, no. Liz Mathew: What do you remember about your time in jail? Those who were political prisoners were treated differently and the others were treated horribly. This was a great influence on me when I became a lawyer in Patna High Court. I decided I will take up the cases of these inmates. During the Emergency, many people — socialist leaders, Sarvodaya leaders, and RSS leaders were arrested and tortured. But I remember many young RSS Swayamsevaks whose nails were extracted to get confessions. It was torture and it was extreme. The lesson I learned in jail was to help the needy and the undertrials. Liz Mathew: The 77th government formation — the coming together of Opposition parties with a lot of hope and optimism to provide an alternative post the Emergency — failed miserably. Why do you think that happened? It was pure craving for power. JP was disenchanted, so were we. This whole fight — Charan Singh, Raj Narayan, among others, was very unfortunate and the Opposition lost out. But what is the biggest lesson of the Emergency? People of India know who they are and what they owe to themselves. They know for sure they can defeat any political party by the power of their vote. Indira Gandhi lost. Sanjay Gandhi lost. The Congress Party was wiped out in North India, and only one seat was won by Kamal Nath… I would've appreciated Rahul Gandhi or his party to have publicly apologised for all the atrocities against journalists, against the supersession of judges, against public leaders. But that is not forthcoming. Liz Mathew: In the run-up to the 2024 election, various parties came together. They say that an undeclared Emergency is happening now. They have the right to ask questions. What else will they say? After all, the NDA led by Narendra Modi is winning elections. The point is ab aapko vote nahi milta toh hum kya karein? Aap jeet jaiye. Get the votes. Every day they hold a press conference, every day they shower classic abuses on Narendra Modi. They also keep on chasing us. That is what democracy is about. On the emergency | It was pure craving for power… I would have appreciated Rahul Gandhi or his party to have publicly apologised for the atrocities against journalists, against public leaders. But that's not forthcoming Aakash Joshi: MISA became a symbol of the oppression of the Emergency. Why do you think no government has been able to get rid of preventive detention, which is not only allowed, but also being used by the government, and various agencies? Do the victims of terror have human rights or not? Commander Narwal, who was killed brutally in Pahalgam, does his wife have a human right or not? Similarly, does India have threats or not? From Maoists, from terrorists, from their network? Therefore, in many cases, you have to resort to preventive detention because of the sheer nature of the challenge. The larger question is, when India became free, why was it kept? There is a proper safeguard in the Constitution: if you are arrested in preventive detention, you have to be present before the advisory board, which confirms it, and thereafter, you can challenge it in court. In many cases, courts have quashed the detention order if it does not satisfy the grounds of detention. That is a safeguard. Vikas Pathak: While JP was the face of the movement, who do you think are the three or four people who did a creditable job? Lalu Prasad Yadav was in jail with me, though much senior to me. Nitish Kumar was there. In the strategy part, I think Ram Bahadur Rai, KN Govindacharya and Nanaji Deshmukh. I remember Nanaji Deshmukh moving throughout the country in his Fiat and he'd keep the literature in the stepney of the car. No leader can dare to impose an Emergency in India now. That's the biggest positive consequence of that struggle. Shalini Langer: Why do you think Indira Gandhi called off the Emergency or called for elections? That is a million-dollar question. The only thing which strikes me is that there were a lot of international campaigns against her. In the US, in the UK, particularly. India's growth was nothing, but we used to be proud of the fact that we were a democracy. That was also snatched away. There were protests abroad. Remember JP was a socialist leader. All the socialist internationals also stood by him. Perhaps they pressured her. She misjudged. Her system had informed her she will sweep the polls. Amitabh Sinha: Fifty years after the actual Emergency, what institutional guardrails have we set up to make sure that no leader can think about imposing an Emergency? First are the newspapers, journalists, the TV media and social media; second is judicial: PIL, public opinion; and third is that all the political groups know that if we impose Emergency, people will drop us. Amitabh Sinha: Why are more active efforts not made to get the 42nd Amendment reversed? Parts of it were challenged. There is only one thing which was accepted. In the Preamble, secularism was introduced, but it was not touched for obvious reasons. The Fundamental Duties remain. Let the people and political parties not misunderstand me, but India has to become a big sporting power. Shouldn't sports come under the concurrent list? The government of India and the state government can pool their resources. If India's tourism has to become global, these are questions which will come. Amitabh Sinha: But the objection to the 42nd Amendment was not just on the content but also on the process itself. The whole 42nd Amendment process was conceived in sin. To make Mrs Gandhi the president. Autocracy or benign autocracy, as the case may be, and the rest is history. The election law was changed retrospectively to ensure her success. Liz Mathew: Often we see arrest warrants or FIRs against journalists. Draconian laws are imposed on YouTubers. How do you justify that? Freedom of the Press is sacrosanct. Independence of the judiciary is sacrosanct. And if Indian democracy has become what it is today over 75 years, apart from political activism and the people, the judiciary and media have played a crucial role. And obviously, if a CM in the East arrests someone for a cartoon… Those who are in politics need to understand one thing: Fun, pun, vyangya and cartoons are a part of democracy. Let us learn to accept it. But is all the YouTubers' content proper? Is there not a case of some YouTubers pandering to (content from) across the borders? You cannot generalise it. Article 19.1 gives the freedom of speech and expression. Article 19.2 in the same Constitution says that reasonable restrictions can be imposed. On freedom of press | Freedom of the Press is sacrosanct. Those who are in politics need to understand one thing: Fun, pun, vyangya and cartoons are a part of democracy. Let's learn to accept it Liz Mathew: What do you think of the widespread criticism of the role of media, especially visual media, during Operation Sindoor. I don't accept this general criticism. When there is a big Army operation, some degree of sanctity has to be given. There cannot be an hourly briefing. One briefing was done by the foreign secretary along with two very distinguished women officers of the armed forces. Thereafter, all the DGs of military operations of the Air Force, Navy and Army gave a wonderful presentation. I had gone to Europe and addressed media in London, Paris, Brussels, Germany, and think tanks. I was asked repeatedly: 'why did you send your forces inside?' And then we said, you can send your armed forces 12,000 kilometres and kill Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan. The life of an ordinary Indian is as costly or precious as that of an American or European. We went only four kilometers. Then they say, why don't you discuss? We were very clear that we have not come to seek your mediation. We are capable of handling Pakistan as we have handled wars. But today, terrorism is a cancer, knocking at your door. And any terrorist attempt, be it in 9/11, in New York, in London, in Paris, in Marseille, in Brussels or Germany, it is either a Pakistani terrorist or one trained in Pakistan. The generals in command in Pakistan are not the political leaders and have vested interests to have these terrorists — their assets to wage a war. In that scenario, whom to talk to? Liz Mathew: During your visit to these multiple cities as part of an all-party delegation, what do you think India should do more? I learned that the committee system of the European Parliament is very powerful. There is a need to utilise this interaction. And when I would introduce my team and say that I am the leader of BJP, we have Congress members, Shiv Sena members, and we have thinkers, then they used to appreciate the diversity of India's politics. The second is, they are deeply impressed by the economic performance of India. Europe wants to have good relations with India. Liz Mathew: The world is facing conflict after conflict. But we don't see India as a player of significance. The global scenario is becoming complex with alarming regularity. What about multilateralism? What about global institutions? What I foresee is this: apart from the UN, many other institutions like the G7, like G20, like Quad, are emerging. I think in all this, India's role is very powerful. As far as the conflict between Israel and Iran is concerned, India has a good equation with both. Therefore, the ceasefire is something we welcome. But the way India rescued its citizens in Iran and Israel is commendable. Liz Mathew: In the Donald Trump era, do you think that India is in a dilemma over how to deal with the tariffs? Let us trust the seasoned capability of Indian negotiators to have a good deal. Trade is a factor which is conditioned by a lot of supplementary factors. You cannot be judgmental today. A lot of give and take, is there. I would refrain from making any comment. On Bihar not developing A second-rung leadership | Nitish Kumar and our relationship goes way far back… If he has been taken as a leader, it doesn't mean the capable people are not there. We will win Bihar again, convincingly Amitabh Sinha: On the judicial reforms, what are the few things that need to be prioritised apart from the Collegium vs NJAC (National Judicial Appointments Commission) debate? With a very good judicial data grid available now, we know how long the cases have been pending in the district courts. All the criminal cases pending for trial for more than five to 10 years and all the pending criminal and civil appeals must be prioritised. There should be a conscious attempt to write off all these outstanding matters. NJAC was brought in by me as the Law minister. There were a lot of recommendations of the Constitutional Review Commission of the Law Commission. And for the first time in the contested polity of India, every party supported it. In the Rajya Sabha, only Ram Jethmalani was a dissenting voice. It has been quashed. We have accepted the judgment. The PM, assisted by his Cabinet, is the key player in the appointment of the President, the Vice President, the three army chiefs, the CVC, the CAG, and the Public Service Commission. He holds the nuclear button. But through the assistance of his law minister, he cannot be trusted to appoint a fair judge, is too sweeping a comment. Liz Mathew: Nitish Kumar has been the Bihar CM for 20 years and will be leading the coalition. Do you think BJP has failed to nurture a second-rung leadership in Bihar? Nitish Kumar and our relationship goes way far back. He was the first to join the BJP alliance in the Samata Party. In the fodder scam, he was the first to oppose Lalu Prasad and came to our support. He was with the Vajpayee government in 1996, in 1998, 1999. Vajpayee ji and Advani ji pushed him as the chief minister in 2000. And from 2005, he became the chief minister. There was a little hesitation in his own camp to let him become the leader of the coalition. How has Bihar changed? I'll give you only one instance. The size of Lalu Prasad's last budget was Rs 23,000 crore. Now it is 3,07,000 crore. The roads are coming, the airports are coming, things are changing. There is a lot of scope to do more, but we can see the transformation. We respect that coalition. If we begin a coalition, we maintain our relationship. We don't kick out our coalition partners. If anyone leaves, it is a different matter; we don't leave. And if Nitish Kumar was taken as a leader, it doesn't mean the capable people are not there. We will win Bihar again, convincingly.
Indian Express
40 minutes ago
- Indian Express
India would love a big, beautiful trade pact with US: Nirmala Sitharaman
AS THE July 9 deadline to avoid the United States' punitive reciprocal tariffs is drawing closer, the government has hinted at uninhibited deal-making with the world's largest economy, but also made an unequivocal commitment to draw definitive red lines in the best interests of India's farmers and livestock breeders. Reacting to President Donald Trump's statement last week that an interim bilateral trade agreement (BTA) in the offing with New Delhi would 'open up' the Indian market for America, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: 'Yes, we would love to have an agreement, a big, good, beautiful one; why not?' In a free-wheeling interview with The Financial Express, Sitharaman said: 'At the junction we are in, and given our growth goals and ambition to be Viksit Bharat by 2047, the sooner we have such agreements with strong economies, the better they will serve us.' According to the Finance Minister, agriculture and dairy have been among the 'very big red lines,' where a high degree of caution has been exercised, during the BTA talks with the US. On a perceived slowdown in investments by the private sector, she said things have started changing for the better. 'At least in the last six months, there is a clear sign that private investments and capacity expansion are happening… There is definitely surplus cash with private companies, and they're probably earning passive income. But we can see signs of change'. Asked what the government is planning to do to reverse urban slowdown, Sitharaman said the sentiment is definitely turning. 'From April, there have clearly been signs of the (positive consumer) sentiment playing out (thanks to the income tax reliefs),' she said. Sitharaman outlined a raft of 'second-generation reforms' to be unleashed soon to impart a structural push to the economy, including 'getting the banks to be better off,' and spurring private investment in nuclear energy. She also indicated that the weighted average Goods and Services Tax (GST) might come down from the current levels, as part of a restructuring of the rates and slabs of the eight-year-old comprehensive indirect tax. She stressed the need to give additional support to merchandise exports, while noting that tax content in exported products is not fully neutralised yet, with certain embedded state and local levies. 'We are looking at different dimension of reforms other than, of course, land and asset monetisation,' she said, while asserting that 'there is no going back on the three labour codes, which states are keenly taking up.' Sitharaman, who met the chiefs of public sector banks Friday for a performance review, acknowledged the issue of their deposit rates (CASA) not growing as much as they used to. 'There will be some kind of attempt by the banks to improve on this,' she said, referring to the 'tightrope walk' of bankers, as people at once want credit to become cheaper and deposits to yield better returns. 'Though banks can go to the market to raise funds, CASA was a cheap capital available,' she said, adding that challenge is compounded by the fact that retail savings are going to the stock markets at a greater pace. She said the time has come for reaching a consensus at the GST Council to design a 'very simplified and easy-to-comply' tax. 'The expectation is that (the average GST rate) will come down, and we are working on it. You can have the revenue buoyancy if the rates are low enough, and that leads to an expansion, which is a normal assumption in economics,' the minister said. In many countries that adopted GST/VAT system over recent decades, the initial rates have been lower than in India, and some of them even managed to bring down the rates further, without taking any hit to revenues. The minister's statement signals that, with buoyant GST revenues, the often-repeated demand for raising the average GST rate to the so-called revenue neutral rate (15%) was unlikely to be pursued, and rates could in general only reduce. That could provide a significant consumption booster to the economy. The minister underlined the need for all states to improve investment climate further, and cautioned that, 'otherwise investments which were coming to some parts of the country cannot reach other parts.' Sitharaman said a major step taken for energy efficiency is the plan to have small, medium, small modular nuclear reactors. 'India needs to ramp up its basic energy base itself,' she said, amid a renewed push to coal-based thermal power to meet the fast-growing peak power demand. '…solar and wind can always be the top-up.' 'The nuclear thing is getting wrapped up. The law will also have to be amended for it, which will happen sooner,' she said.- FE
India Gazette
an hour ago
- India Gazette
India refutes reports in Indonesia on loss of fighter jets during Operation Sindoor
Jakarta [Indonesia], June 29 (ANI): India has refuted reports regarding a presentation made by the Defence Attache at a seminar in Indonesia over the fighter jets allegedly lost during Operation Sindoor, saying that the remarks were 'taken out of context' and are 'misrepresenting the intention and thrust' of the presentation. 'We have seen media reports regarding a presentation made by the Defence Attache at a Seminar. His remarks have been quoted out of context and the media reports are a mis-representation of the intention and thrust of the presentation made by the speaker,' the Indian Embassy in Indonesia said in a statement on Sunday. 'The presentation conveyed that the Indian Armed Forces serve under civilian political leadership unlike some other countries in our neighbourhood. It was also explained that the objective of Operation Sindoor was to target terrorist infrastructure and the Indian response was non-escalatory,' it added. Earlier in May, Reuters released an article citing Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan's statement on India's military superiority over Pakistan during Operation Sindoor. The CDS admitted during the interview that the Armed Forces had suffered losses in the initial stages of the operation but then struck with impunity at Pakistan's bases. 'So what I can say is, on May 7 and the initial stages, there were losses, but the numbers and that's not important. What was important is why did these losses occur, and what will we do after that? So we rectified the tactics and then went back on seventh, eighth and 10th, and 10th in large numbers, to hit their bases deep inside Pakistan, penetrated all their defences with impunity, with scattered opposition strikes,' Gen Chauhan was quoted as saying by Reuters. India decisively asserted its military superiority over Pakistan during last month's brief but intense conflict, with its aerial strikes penetrating deep into Pakistani territory and delivering pinpoint blows to critical enemy infrastructure such as radar systems, control units, and airbases, a Reuters report citing CDS statement, underlining how New Delhi's military superiority during 'Operation Sindoor' forced Islamabad to tuck its tail. During Operation Sindoor, India demonstrated that large-scale counter-terror operations could be carried out with surgical precision, even against a nuclear-armed adversary, without triggering significant escalation. (ANI)
