‘Military rule your tradition’: India stings Pakistan at Commonwealth meet

The Indian delegation at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Uganda said the tradition of military rule is prevalent in Pakistan and the country has been under such rule for 33 years

The Ugandan capital Kampala was the setting for the latest face-off between India and Pakistan where New Delhi dismissed Islamabad’s “propaganda” on the Kashmir issue at the general assembly of the 64th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Uganda and said military rule has been Islamabad’s tradition, according to an official statement.

BJP MP Roopa Ganguly making India’s point at the 64th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Uganda. (ANI)

The Indian response came after the Pakistani delegation referred to the heavy presence of security forces in Kashmir Valley.

The Indian delegation led by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and includes MPs Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Roopa Ganguly and L Hanumanthaiah, said the tradition of military rule is prevalent in Pakistan and the country has been under such rule for 33 years, according to a statement issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat.

“Pakistani propaganda was strongly opposed by Roopa Ganguly, MP and other Members of Indian Parliamentary Delegation,” it said.

The presiding officers and secretaries of state legislatures, who are members of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, are participating in the conference which will conclude on Sunday.

Saturday’s war of words came on the heels of Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer Vidisha Maitra ‘s speech who nailed Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on every single of his speech at the UN on Friday while describing his country as the fountainhead of terrorism.

At the beginning of this month, a Pakistani delegation also raised the Kashmir issue at the South Asian Speakers’ Summit in the Maldives. Pakistan’s objections were rejected in the Male declaration after India’s strong opposition.