E-Paper
‘Opposition reluctant to celebrate Masood Azhar ban’, says Arun Jaitley
Finance minister Arun Jaitley said, speaking in one voice on issues such as external affairs and national security has been a tradition in this country, but there has been a departure from it in the past few years.
Prefer HTon Google
The United Nations designating Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar a global terrorist is a diplomatic victory for India and the Opposition is reluctant to celebrate the achievement fearing they will have to pay a political price for it, finance minister Arun Jaitley said on Thursday.
Four out of seven rounds of polling for the Lok Sabha are over, and Wednesday’s announcement is seen as a shot in the arm for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose Bharatiya Janata Party has made nationalism a big talking point in the election campaign.
“It is a matter of pride that nationalism is an issue in this election,” Jaitley told reporters at the BJP headquarters. “It is a shame that Opposition doesn’t want this to be so.”
Jaitley said, speaking in one voice on issues such as external affairs and national security has been a tradition in this country, but there has been a departure from it in the past few years.
“If India wins, Indians win. But, there are friends in Opposition who are not celebrating as they may have to pay a political price for it,” Jaitley said. The senior BJP leader said that the effort to designate Azhar a global terrorist was started in 2009, but bore fruits under the present regime.
Congress spokesperson Rajeev Shukla back, saying such designations were the result of a continuous process and just one government should not take credit for it. “We humbly request them with folded hands to not take credit for everything,” he said.
