Pakistan says premature to congratulate PM Narendra Modi on electoral win

Ahead of Narendra Modi’s swearing-in as the Prime Minister, Pakistan on Friday said it was “premature” for the country to congratulate the Indian Prime Minister. The statement by Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch came after she was asked whether her country had officially congratulated Narendra Modi on winning the general elections.

“We do not have any comments on their electoral process,” Baloch said, adding that since the formation of government was going on in India, it is “premature” to talk about congratulating the Indian Prime Minister.

She also said it was the right of the people of India to decide about their own leadership.

Addressing her weekly press briefing, Baloch said Pakistan desired “cooperative ties” with all neighbours, including India, and resolution of disputes through talks.

Baloch also said Pakistan has been acting in a “responsible manner, notwithstanding the difficulties and rhetoric coming from India”.

“Pakistan has always desired cooperative relations with all its neighbours including India. We have consistently advocated constructive dialogue and engagement to resolve all outstanding issues, including the core dispute of Jammu and Kashmir,” she said.

Pakistan downgraded its ties with India after the Indian Parliament suspended Article 370 on August 5, 2019, a decision that Islamabad believed undermined the environment for holding talks between the neighbours.

India has been maintaining that it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan while insisting that the onus is on Islamabad to create an environment that is free of terror and hostility for such an engagement.

“Pakistan believes in peaceful co-existence. We hope that India will take steps to create a conducive environment for the advancement of peace and dialogue and resolution of long-standing disputes for the mutual benefit of the peoples of Pakistan and India,” Baloch said at the briefing.

Narendra Modi is all set to take charge as India’s Prime Minister on Sunday for a historic third consecutive term with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) winning 293 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, the results for which were announced on June 4.