Following India's suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty and a series of hostile measures after the deadly attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s (IIOJK) Pahalgam area, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif announced on Wednesday that a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) will be held on Thursday under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Speaking to a private news channel, Asif said, “The National Security Committee will decide an appropriate response to the Indian steps.” He asserted that India could not unilaterally suspend the treaty, noting that the World Bank is also a key stakeholder in the agreement.
“As per the Treaty, India is not in a position to make such a decision alone,” said Asif, warning that Pakistan is fully capable of responding to provocations, as demonstrated during the Abhinandan episode in 2019. “If India takes extreme steps under internal pressure, we are prepared,” he said.
He further dismissed India's allegations of Pakistani involvement in the Pahalgam incident, calling them “inappropriate.”
Speaking on another TV channel, Asif reiterated Pakistan’s consistent condemnation of terrorism and said it has been one of the worst victims of the menace. “There should be no ambiguity that we strongly condemn terrorism,” he said, while adding that the possibility of a false flag operation could not be ruled out.
Asif also accused India of sponsoring terrorist activities in Balochistan, harbouring separatists, and supporting Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) through its consulates in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar echoed Asif’s sentiments, describing India’s announcements as “inappropriate and lacking seriousness,” and promised a “fitting response.” “The NSC will issue a comprehensive reply tomorrow,” Dar said on the same programme, emphasising that India had provided no credible evidence linking Pakistan to the attack.
Dar accused New Delhi of using Pakistan as a scapegoat for its internal failures. “Blaming others without evidence is unjustified,” he said.
Moreover, Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) Senator Irfan Siddiqui described the Pahalgam incident as a false flag operation allegedly “orchestrated by the Indian army.”
Siddiqui pointed out India’s pattern of staging such incidents during sensitive international moments. “India has forcefully occupied Kashmir and continuously engaged in acts of terrorism inside Pakistan,” he stated, adding that Pakistani authorities had apprehended Indian spies in the past.
Source: The Express Tribune
BDST: 1021 HRS, April 24, 2025
MSK
