Nobody takes Pakistan seriously: MEA as Pak wades into India-Canada tussle

The MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi was responding to Pakistani allegations of supporting terrorism in the country and its Pakistan foreign ministry's comment on the ongoing India-Canada diplomatic row.

New Delhi:Pakistan is the last country to talk about credibility and no one takes their comments seriously, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday during its weekly media briefing which majorly covered the ongoing diplomatic standoff between India and Canada.

The MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi was responding to Pakistani allegations of supporting terrorism in the country and its Pakistan foreign ministry's comment on the ongoing India-Canada diplomatic row.

On Wednesday, Pakistan said 'India’s network of extra-territorial killings has now gone global. "Pakistan has remained a target of a series of targeted killings and espionage by RAW. In December last year, Pakistan released a comprehensive dossier providing concrete and irrefutable evidence of India’s involvement in the Lahore attack of June 2021", the Pakistan foreign ministry said during the media briefing on Wednesday.

"That attack was planned and executed by Indian intelligence. In 2016, a high-ranking Indian military officer, Commander Kulbhushan Yadav, confessed his involvement in directing, financing, and executing terror and sabotage in Pakistan. India’s assassination of a Canadian national on Canadian soil is a clear violation of international law and the UN principle of state sovereignty. It is also a reckless and irresponsible act that calls into question India’s reliability as a credible partner and its claims for enhanced global responsibilities", Pakistan said.

The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson said that the funding of Canada-based Khalistani extremists from Pakistan is a much more serious issue amid an ongoing row over Khalistani sympathizer Hardeep Singh Nijjar's killing. Bagchi said that the allegations made by Canada against India are politically driven with a degree of prejudice.

"Among other issues, the ongoing funding of Khalistani extremists based in Canada from Pakistani soil is a much more serious issue," the MEA spokesperson said. "We have informed the government of Canada that there should be parity in strength in our mutual diplomatic presence," he added.

He noted that Canadian diplomatic interference in India's internal affairs is a big factor while adding that 'there will be a reduction of Canadian diplomats serving in the country. Their number is very much higher than ours in Canada. I assume there will be a reduction from the Canadian side".

On allegations made by Canada, Bagchi also informed reporters that these allegations were raised by Canadian PM Justin Trudeau with PM (Modi) and the PM rejected them.