WEB DESK. The recent series of unsubstantiated statements by the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) top tier leadership is stirring up controversies every other day and tarnishing the political party’s image among the people.
Such a controversy surfaced on Wednesday when the Former National Assembly (NA) Speaker Ayaz Sadiq claimed that Pakistan’s government released the captured Indian Air Force Pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman in fear. This statement immediately rapidly made into headlines in neighboring India.
He also asserted that the legs of Foreign Minister were ‘shaking’ when he attended a meeting, in which the opposition parties and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa were present but Prime Minister Imran Khan had refused to attend it.
Ayaz had pointed out during the NA Session that Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mehmood Qureshi had warned that India would attack Pakistan that night by 9 pm if its pilot was not released.
The claims made by the former speaker on the assembly floor gained limelight in the Indian media and Pakistan’s goodwill gesture was deemed as an act of cowardice.
Pakistanis vituperated former speaker on the microblogging website Twitter for playing fast and loose on a sensitive issue. They also ran a trend against Sadiq on the microblogging website which remained on top for several hours. The users termed the former speaker ‘a friend of India’ and ‘servant of enemies’ , tarnishing Pakistan’s efforts for peace and stability in the region and rather serving enemies’ interests.
Something that was proof of our integrity, our maturity as a neighbor and our want for regional peace, is now being veiled as cowardice because these people will stoop to anything to malign Khan, even if it means to malign us. pic.twitter.com/wEnThrcuMh
— Amina (@Amina55783284) October 29, 2020
Indian media and people used the development for face-saving and started terming the release of captured pilot as Indian victory over Pakistan and compared it with cowardice , disregarding element of good will gesture from the latter.
Later, Pakistani FM Mehmood Qureshi also refuted the claims by the former speaker and said that they were contrary to the realities.
News360 contacted the PML-N Leader Muhammad Zubair but he refused to comment on the issue.
Indian Wing Commander Varthaman’s fighter jet was gunned down by the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) as it intruded the country’s aerial space on February 27, 2019 and he was apprehended. However, he was handed over to India by Pakistan as a good will gesture.