Union minister's challenge to Pakistan's Bilawal Bhutto ‘blood’ remark: ‘Come to India if you have courage’
Amid escalating tensions over the Pahalgam attack, Pakistan's Bilawal Bhutto warned that halting water flow would lead to “Indian blood flowing” instead.
Union Jal Shakti minister CR Paatil on Monday challenged Pakistani politician Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari over his “blood would flow in rivers if water is stopped” comment, daring him to come to India if he truly has the courage.
Paatil’s response came after the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader made provocative statements following India’s suspension of the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack.
"Modiji says 'jal hai to bal hai' (water is strength). Modi sahab has stated that Pakistan should not receive water under the Indus Water Treaty. Bilawal got furious and said if water is stopped, a river of blood will flow in India," Paatil said during a function in Surat on Sunday.
“Will we be scared? I tell him (Bhutto) that brother, if you have even a little courage, then come here. Without worrying about such bravado, it is our responsibility to save water,” the BJP leader added.
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What did Bilawal Bhutto say?
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, while addressing protesters in Sukkur, Sindh province on Friday, claimed that the Indus River belongs to Islamabad and will remain under its control. Amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan over the Pahalgam terror attack, Zardari warned that if the flow of water is stopped, "Indian blood will flow" instead.
The Pakistan People's Party chairman said that India blamed Islamabad for the attack to cover its “own weaknesses and deceive its people”. He accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of making false allegations and highlighted the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.
"The Indus is ours and will remain ours - either our water will flow through it, or their blood," Zardari was quoted as saying by The News. He also noted that while Modi claims India is the heir to an ancient civilisation, “But that civilisation lies in Mohenjo-daro, in Larkana. We are its true custodians, and we will defend it.”
The Indian government did not immediately respond to Zardari's remarks.
Indus Water Treaty (IWT) in abeyance after Pahalgam attack
India has suspended the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) of 1960 with Pakistan until Islamabad credibly and permanently ends its support for cross-border terrorism.
The IWT, brokered by the World Bank, was established as a framework for water-sharing between the two nations, governing the use of the Indus River and its five tributaries: Sutlej, Beas, Ravi, Jhelum, and Chenab.
Signed after over nine years of negotiations, the treaty divides the Indus system into eastern and western rivers. The Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej are classified as eastern rivers, while the Chenab, Jhelum, and Indus are considered western rivers. The Kabul River, a right-bank tributary, does not flow through India.
These rivers' waters are crucial for both India and Pakistan.
(With PTI inputs)
