Last month, eight members of Indian High Commission were declared persona non grata for their involvement in vile activities and reportedly seven of them were expelled from Pakistan. However, one would not know why Commercial Counselor Rajesh Kumar Agnihotri who was declared as RAW’s station chief has not been deported. Credible sources said that he has contacted number of media men in Pakistan and complained that they did not give adequate coverage to the so-called India’s surgical strike. The objective appears to be that a controversy should start and questions be raised to paint Pakistan security establishment in poor light. The fact of the matter is that none of the sober media man, analysts or politicians believed the concocted story of surgical strike in Pakistan, and even international media did not pay any attention to India’s propaganda campaign in this regard.
Leading US newspaper, The Washington Post, in an article had published interviews of locals living along the Line of Control. The majority of villagers in the three areas along the LoC said that they did not witness any cross-border movement of troops or hear the sound of any helicopters. The residents of Bhimber, Chamb and Sahmani said that a heavy exchange of fire did take place, although no one said that they had seen or heard anything that supported India’s claim that it carried out cross-border strikes on several staging areas for militant groups that left “double digits” of militants dead, according to the article. Another well-reputed publication, ‘The Diplomat’, in a piece titled ‘Is India Capable of a Surgical Strike in Pakistan Controlled Kashmir?’ raised some serious questions about the capabilities of the Indian military.
The article asked whether the Indian forces had the requisite capability for those much-hyped ‘surgical strikes’. The piece took a critical look into India’s defence system, stating that the majority of the acquired warfare mechanisms and machinery were along the ‘Cold War’ lines. It also stated that most of the Indian machinery was in a ‘training and testing’ or rather an ‘infancy’ phase. According to a BBC Urdu article, when the locals residing merely two kilometres away from Indian check-posts were inquired about the strikes they said: “What surgical strikes? That day there was just more than usual firing.” It seems that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, under exceeding pressure following the Uri attacks, had tried to make a face-saving move by fabricating the story of surgical strike, which lacked the substance to make it convincing and credible not for the international media but also for the domestic media.
Interestingly, Pakistan Army after firmly denying the claims of strikes had taken independent journalists to the LoC at Baghsir, 20 kilometres from Bhimber to show the situation on ground. DG ISPR General Asim Saleem Bajwa had stressed that while Pakistan had brought journalists to the LoC and showed them the situation on ground, India was not allowing the same access to its own people, which was suspicious. After facing ignominy, India did not stop its shenanigans, and used diplomatic staff in Pakistan to further its nefarious designs. Anyhow, India has violated the diplomatic norms and code of conduct of maintaining relations between two sovereign states. On the other hand, Pakistan has pursued a policy of restraint, patience and sobriety, which has been appreciated the world over. A number of countries have expressed their appreciation of this policy.
On the other hand, India violated diplomatic norms and Vienna Convention when our diplomatic staff was arrested and tortured until our High Commission intervened. All along their security agencies, who keep surveillance on each one and everyone’s movement round the clock, knew that Mr. Mahmood Akhter was a High Commission’s official but they chose to violate Vienna convention. They deliberately released the names of six other diplomats and diplomatic staff falsely accusing them, which endangered their families’ lives and that of their own. They were unable to perform their diplomatic duties while their families were harassed. Consequently, Pakistan had to recall them for their safety. However, staff belonging to the Indian intelligence agencies RAW and IB was found involved in coordinating terrorist and subversive activities in Pakistan under the garb of diplomatic assignments.
Their names and designations of RAW’s operatives were Rajesh Kumar Agnihotri, Commercial Counsellor, RAW’s station chief; Anurag Singh 1st Secretary Commercial; Amerdeep Singh Bhatti Attache Visa; Dharmendra Sodhi, Staff Member; Mr. Vijay Kumar Verma, Staff; and Madhavan Nanda Kumar Staff. Indian IB’s operatives were: Balbir Singh, 1st Secretary Press & Information and IB Station Chief; and Jayabalan Senthil, Asstt Personnel Welfare Officer. Surjeet Singh who was declared persona non grata was also an IB operative working under Balbir Singh. Surjeet was using a fake identity as Abdul Hafeez pretending to be a telecom company Warid’s employee. Pakistan has been trying to improve relations with India, but India has not only been found involved in promoting terrorist activities and terror financing as was disclosed by Kulbhushan Yadav, and further confirmed by the statements at the highest political level including Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement on 15th August 2016.
India has been using its diplomatic mission for its nefarious designs. Seven of eight Indian diplomats, who were declared persona non grata by Pakistan over their involvement in espionage and subversive activities in the country, had left for New Delhi in first week of November 2016. It should be mentioned here that Pakistan’s Foreign Office earlier on November 3 revealed that eight Indian diplomats and staff belonging to the Indian intelligence agencies RAW and Intelligence Bureau had been found involved in subversive activities in Pakistan under the garb of diplomatic assignments. Anyhow, Indian deep seated animosity towards Pakistan can well be measured through her secret plots, spying schemes and espionage/sabotage missions illegally sent inside Pakistani territory in the form of clusters of secret agents, spy networks, criminals/terrorists and groups of saboteurs.
