Pakistani diplomat slammed for throat-slitting gesture at Indians in London: 'Madrassa-chhap mindset’
A Pakistani diplomat's threatening gesture towards Indian protesters in London sparks outrage. Shesh Paul Vaid slams the mindset.
Former Jammu and Kashmir director general of police Shesh Paul Vaid on Saturday blasted a Pakistani diplomat for the throat-slitting gesture made and described Pakistanis like him as "Madrassa-chhap", a mindset he attributed to former dictator General Zia-ul-Haq.
There was a face-off between Indian diaspora groups who gathered to protest Pakistan-backed terrorism in the wake of the Pahalgam terrorist attack and counter-protesters outside the Pakistan high commission in London, which saw scenes of a Pakistani diplomatic official making threatening gestures.
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In videos posted by Indian community groups from Friday evening’s protest on social media, the Pakistani official can be seen taunting them from the balcony of the mission building at Lowndes Square.
He was holding a poster with a sketch of Captain Abhinandan Varthaman and the words “Chai is Fantastic” – a reference to the Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot’s captivity in February 2019.
Speaking to news agency ANI, Shesh Vaid said, “... All these Pakistanis are 'Madrassa-chhap' created by General Zia-ul-Haq. Whether it's an army colonel, a diplomat, or a doctor – wherever they are, they are all 'Madrassa-chhap'. They have the mentality of 'Madrassa-chhap'. Gesturing that they will slit the throat of the people who are protesting peacefully.”
He called Colonel Taimur Rahat's gesture offensive and urged UK authorities to take action against him for threatening peaceful Indian protesters, ANI reported. “The gesture is offensive, and UK police should take action, register a case, punish him, and throw him out of the UK. He is threatening Indian peaceful protestors…” he added.
HT.com couldn't independently identify the Pakistani official.
Colonel Taimur Rahat of the Pakistan Army, who is an air advisor at the Pakistan high commission in London, was caught on camera making a threatening gesture.
In videos that are now viral on social media, Colonel Rahat was seen publicly making a threatening throat slit gesture towards Indian community protestors outside the mission.
More than 500 British Hindus held a protest outside the Pakistan embassy on Friday over the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, which claimed 26 lives.
“Holding the Indian tricolour and placards reading ‘Stop Terrorism’, we are here to condemn the killing of innocents by Pakistan’s support of terrorism in Kashmir. We demand strict international action and urge the UK government to stand with India and reconsider its policy towards Pakistan,” said a spokesperson for the Friends of India Society International (FISI) UK told news agency PTI.
“In a shocking and utterly deplorable display, a member of the Pakistani High Commission in the UK brandished a photo of India's Wing Commander Abhinandan and made a barbaric throat-slitting gesture during a protest over the Pahalgam attack — an act that reflects not only blatant hostility but also a dangerous disregard for diplomatic norms and human decency,” the spokesperson added.
(With inputs from ANI, PTI)
