India must strongly respond to Pakistan's act of backing cross-border terror attacks, while also keeping the doors for talks open, RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale told PTI news agency.
The remarks come at a time when India-Pakistan ties remain strained, more so after the Pahalgam terror attack and India's military strikes on Pakistan terror hideouts through Operation Sindoor.
Hosabale recalled how, during the time of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the former prime minister kept a path open for dialogue, and even travelled to Lahore by bus.
"Everything has been tried and more such efforts should continue. Atal ji tried to engage them in dialogue. He went to Lahore by bus and many things have happened, and our prime minister now also invited Pakistan at the time of taking oath. Then he attended the wedding ceremony of a Pakistani leader. So all these things we have tried," the general secretary of the BJP's ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), told PTI.
"If Pakistan is like a pinprick trying to create incidents like Pulwama, etc., we have to answer appropriately according to the situation because the security and self-respect of a country and nation have to be protected, and the government of the day should take note of it and take care of it," Hosabale said.
"But at the same time, we should not close the doors. We should always be ready to engage in dialogue. That is why diplomatic relations are maintained, trade and commerce continue, and visas are being given. So we should not stop these, because there should always be a window for dialogue," he said.
India's sharp message to ChinaIndia said "responsible nations" must reflect on their attempts to support state sponsors of terror, in a pointed message to China after Beijing publicly admitted assisting Pakistan during Operation Sindoor. The remarks came days after a Chinese official suggested Beijing provided on-ground technical assistance to Pakistan during the three-day hostilities. It, however, did not account for much as Islamabad scurried to Delhi for a ceasefire as the Indian military pounded air bases in Pakistan. |
