The Evening Wrap: Pakistan slams Rajnath’s ‘provocative’ remarks

A day after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s comments that “if terrorists run away to Pakistan, we will enter Pakistan to kill them”, the spokesperson of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has “denounced the provocative remarks” while asserting that Pakistan stands resolute in its “intent and ability” to safeguard its sovereignty against any “act of aggression”. The office of the spokesperson said that on January 25, Pakistan provided “irrefutable” evidence, “elucidating India’s campaign of extrajudicial and transnational assassinations” on Pakistani soil. “India’s assertion of its preparedness to extra-judicially execute more civilians, arbitrarily pronounced as ‘terrorists’, inside Pakistan constitutes a clear admission of culpability. It is imperative for the international community to hold India accountable for its heinous and illegal actions,” the statement said. Pakistan stands resolute in its intent and ability to safeguard its sovereignty against any act of aggression, as demonstrated by its robust response to India’s “reckless incursion” in February 2019 which laid bare India’s “hollow claims of military superiority”, the statement said referring to the Balakot air strike by the Indian Air Force on February 26, 2019 and the follow on developments the next day. “India’s ruling dispensation habitually resorts to hateful rhetoric to fuel hyper-nationalistic sentiments, unapologetically exploiting such discourse for electoral gains,” the Spokesperson said and such “myopic and irresponsible behaviour” not only undermines regional peace but also impedes the prospects of constructive engagement in the long term. The statement further said that Pakistan has “always demonstrated its commitment” to peace in the region, however, their desire for peace should “not be misconstrued.” “History attests to Pakistan’s firm resolve and ability to protect and defend itself,” it added. Mr. Singh made the comments during an interview to a TV channel in response to a question on an article in The Guardian which claimed that India carried out execution of almost 20 terrorists since 2020 inside Pakistan. “If any terrorist tries to disturb the peace in Bharat, or tries to carry out terror activities in Bharat, we will give them befitting reply [muh tod jawab],” the Defence Minister said. Congress manifesto has stamp of Muslim League: PM Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 6 alleged that the Congress manifesto had the “stamp of the Muslim League and the Left”. Addressing a massive election rally in Saharanpur in west Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Modi, without explaining the reason for drawing the comparison, said the present Congress had moved away from the Congress of the Freedom Movement. “It neither has policies in national interest nor a vision for national development.” Mr. Modi had come to bolster the prospects of the party candidates in Saharanpur and Kairana where the Muslim vote can prove decisive. While the BJP secured the Kairana seat in 2019, it lost Saharanpur to Bahujan Samaj Party. Reaching out to the minority vote, Mr. Modi said his government was practising true secularism and social justice because “our schemes don’t differentiate between beneficiaries.” Charging the INDIA alliance for saving the corrupt, Mr. Modi said while “the BJP is driven by a mission, the Congress is working to earn commission.” Elaborating on the mission, he underlined the construction of the Ram Temple, the abrogation of Article 370, and the law against Triple Talaq. Clarifying that Triple Talaq didn’t only benefit Muslim women, Mr. Modi said it helped Muslim families. “No father or brother wants her daughter or sister to return home. For centuries, Muslim women would thank him for bringing a strong law against Triple Talaq,” he added. Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath waded intoThe Guardianreport on the Indian government’s role in eliminating terrorists in Pakistan. “The report of the reputed paper has brought global attention to how terrorists were eliminated in Pakistan between 2020 and 2022. OnlyThe Guardiancan tell about the source of its report but no one shall doubt the government has zero tolerance on any form of corruption and anarchy,” he said, adding issues on which world used to dither could no longer be sidelined. “The world is realising that terrorism is a challenge that needs to be addressed and India under Modi ji has taken the lead,” he said. Conspiracy being hatched to change the Constitution, says Sonia Gandhi Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre of destroying the democratic institutions, built with hard work, by the weapons of political power and tearing apart the dignity of the nation. Ms. Gandhi said a conspiracy was also being hatched to change the Constitution. Accompanied by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and other party leaders, Ms. Gandhi publicly launched the party’s Lok Sabha election manifesto, titled Nyay Patra (document of justice) and released in New Delhi on Friday, at a rally organised at Vidyadhar Nagar Stadium here. Ms. Gandhi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who considered himself “above the nation”, was undermining democracy and resorting to various tactics to intimidate and threaten the Opposition leaders to make them join the BJP. “This is nothing less than dictatorship and we will give a befitting reply [to it],” Ms. Gandhi, the chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party, said. She said the BJP government’s only achievements during the last 10 years were the rising unemployment, inflation, economic crisis and inequality. Ms. Gandhi said the present spell of frustration would soon give way to the hope for betterment. “The nation belongs to all of us. Our colleagues in Congress will light the lamp of justice and move forward… The innocent children of the country cannot be deprived of their share of justice.” Addressing the rally, Mr. Kharge said Mr. Modi, who had been flagging off the infrastructure built by the Congress during the last 70 years, was talking everywhere about “Modi’s guarantees” after stealing the concept from the Congress. He said Mr. Modi and the BJP had only been abusing the Gandhi family in the last 10 years. Ms. Vadra said the Congress manifesto, containing guarantees for farmers and other sections of society, would turn out to be the voice of the nation which wanted justice. While unemployment and inflation were at their peak, the Opposition was under a blatant attack from the BJP regime at the Centre, she said. Three rescued, 7 held as CBI busts network of infant traffickers The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has busted a network of infant traffickers, rescuing three children and arresting seven accused people after searching seven locations in Delhi and Haryana. “Two male infants of just 1.5 days and 15 days and one female child of one month have also been rescued by the CBI during the operation. Incriminating articles besides ₹5.5 lakh in cash have been seized,” an agency official said. The accused have been identified as Neeraj from Haryana, and Indu Pawar, Aslam, Pooja Kashyap, Ritu, Anjali, and Kavita from different parts of Delhi. The CBI has registered a case against 10 persons under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act. They have been accused of being part of a network which trafficked infant children across the country for the purpose of adoption as well as for other illegal purposes. According to the agency, the accused used advertisements on social media platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp groups to get in touch with childless couples who were keen to adopt babies. The gang members would allegedly buy babies from their biological parents as well as from surrogate mothers and then sell these infant children at prices ranging from ₹4 lakh to ₹6 lakh per child. “These accused are also allegedly involved in duping many childless couples of lakhs of rupees by creating fake documents related to adoption,” the agency said. NIA official suffers minor injuries in attack on team at West Bengal’s Bhupatinagar A team from the National Investigation Agency ( NIA) was attacked by locals in West Bengal’s Bhupatinagar area during an early morning raid in connection with the investigation of a bomb blast. An NIA official suffered minor injuries. The NIA team was visiting the area on April 6 in connection with investigation in the Bhupatinagar blast case of December 2022. The explosion due to crude bombs on December 3, 2022, had claimed three lives. Officials today arrested two key conspirators “amid stiff resistance from an unruly crowd in the state’s East Medinipore district.” “The duo, Balai Charan Maity and Manobrata Jana, were arrested after extensive searches at five locations, including the house of Jana, where acrowd of local residents tried to obstruct the NIA team,” the agency said in a press release. “One NIA team member suffered minor injury and the agency’s official vehicle was also damaged as some miscreants in the crowd assaulted them. The aggressive crowd tried to stop the NIA team and its security component from moving towards Bhupatinagar police station to complete the arrest formalities,” it added. After the NIA detained two persons at Bhupatinagar, a group of locals gathered around the vehicle carrying the NIA officials, held protests, and allegedly threw stones at the vehicle. The NIA produced the two arrested before a court in Kolkata. Poll roundup The Communist Party of India (CPI) on April 6 released its manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha election, calling for a change of government at the Centre. “Unemployment and price rise have become the biggest woes for the people. BJP’s rule has resulted in unprecedented concentration of wealth at the top while the poor are pushed to destitution,” said party general secretary D. Raja. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has questioned the “reprehensible silence” of the Congress on the issue of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Speaking to mediapersons at Cherthala in Alappuzha, Mr. Vijayan said that unlike the Congress, the manifesto of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) had pledged to scrap “draconian laws” such as the CAA, Prevention of Money Laundering Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, among others. In Brief The Leh Apex Body has withdrawn their proposed march to the Changthang border with China on April 7, saying it is doing so in the interest of people even as it accused the administration of turning Leh into a “war zone”. The LAB said they have already achieved their objective of creating awareness among the people of the country about the plight of farmers. They said the farmers are losing prime pasture land to huge industrial plants in the south and “Chinese encroachments” in the north. They said they will continue their peaceful peaceful agitation in support of their various demands, especially statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion in the sixth schedule of the Constitution. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 06 April 2024 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Pakistan slams Rajnath’s ‘provocative’ remarks A day after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s comments that “if terrorists run away to Pakistan, we will enter Pakistan to kill them”, the spokesperson of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has [“denounced the provocative remarks”]( while asserting that Pakistan stands resolute in its “intent and ability” to safeguard its sovereignty against any “act of aggression”. The office of the spokesperson said that on January 25, Pakistan provided “irrefutable” evidence, “elucidating India’s campaign of extrajudicial and transnational assassinations” on Pakistani soil. “India’s assertion of its preparedness to extra-judicially execute more civilians, arbitrarily pronounced as ‘terrorists’, inside Pakistan constitutes a clear admission of culpability. It is imperative for the international community to hold India accountable for its heinous and illegal actions,” the statement said. Pakistan stands resolute in its intent and ability to safeguard its sovereignty against any act of aggression, as demonstrated by its robust response to India’s “reckless incursion” in February 2019 which laid bare India’s “hollow claims of military superiority”, the statement said referring to the Balakot air strike by the Indian Air Force on February 26, 2019 and the follow on developments the next day. “India’s ruling dispensation habitually resorts to hateful rhetoric to fuel hyper-nationalistic sentiments, unapologetically exploiting such discourse for electoral gains,” the Spokesperson said and such “myopic and irresponsible behaviour” not only undermines regional peace but also impedes the prospects of constructive engagement in the long term. The statement further said that Pakistan has “always demonstrated its commitment” to peace in the region, however, their desire for peace should “not be misconstrued.” “History attests to Pakistan’s firm resolve and ability to protect and defend itself,” it added. Mr. Singh made the comments during an interview to a TV channel in response to a question on an article in The Guardian which claimed that India carried out execution of almost 20 terrorists since 2020 inside Pakistan. “If any terrorist tries to disturb the peace in Bharat, or tries to carry out terror activities in Bharat, we will give them befitting reply [muh tod jawab],” the Defence Minister said. Congress manifesto has stamp of Muslim League: PM Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 6 [alleged that the Congress manifesto had the “stamp of the Muslim League and the Left”](. Addressing a massive election rally in Saharanpur in west Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Modi, without explaining the reason for drawing the comparison, said the present Congress had moved away from the Congress of the Freedom Movement. “It neither has policies in national interest nor a vision for national development.” Mr. Modi had come to bolster the prospects of the party candidates in Saharanpur and Kairana where the Muslim vote can prove decisive. While the BJP secured the Kairana seat in 2019, it lost Saharanpur to Bahujan Samaj Party. Reaching out to the minority vote, Mr. Modi said his government was practising true secularism and social justice because “our schemes don’t differentiate between beneficiaries.” Charging the INDIA alliance for saving the corrupt, Mr. Modi said while “the BJP is driven by a mission, the Congress is working to earn commission.” Elaborating on the mission, he underlined the construction of the Ram Temple, the abrogation of Article 370, and the law against Triple Talaq. Clarifying that Triple Talaq didn’t only benefit Muslim women, Mr. Modi said it helped Muslim families. “No father or brother wants her daughter or sister to return home. For centuries, Muslim women would thank him for bringing a strong law against Triple Talaq,” he added. Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath waded intoThe Guardianreport on the Indian government’s role in eliminating terrorists in Pakistan. “The report of the reputed paper has brought global attention to how terrorists were eliminated in Pakistan between 2020 and 2022. OnlyThe Guardiancan tell about the source of its report but no one shall doubt the government has zero tolerance on any form of corruption and anarchy,” he said, adding issues on which world used to dither could no longer be sidelined. “The world is realising that terrorism is a challenge that needs to be addressed and India under Modi ji has taken the lead,” he said. Conspiracy being hatched to change the Constitution, says Sonia Gandhi Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre of destroying the democratic institutions, built with hard work, by the weapons of political power and tearing apart the dignity of the nation. Ms. Gandhi [said a conspiracy was also being hatched to change the Constitution](. Accompanied by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and other party leaders, Ms. Gandhi publicly launched the party’s Lok Sabha election manifesto, titled Nyay Patra (document of justice) and released in New Delhi on Friday, at a rally organised at Vidyadhar Nagar Stadium here. Ms. Gandhi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who considered himself “above the nation”, was undermining democracy and resorting to various tactics to intimidate and threaten the Opposition leaders to make them join the BJP. “This is nothing less than dictatorship and we will give a befitting reply [to it],” Ms. Gandhi, the chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party, said. She said the BJP government’s only achievements during the last 10 years were the rising unemployment, inflation, economic crisis and inequality. Ms. Gandhi said the present spell of frustration would soon give way to the hope for betterment. “The nation belongs to all of us. Our colleagues in Congress will light the lamp of justice and move forward… The innocent children of the country cannot be deprived of their share of justice.” Addressing the rally, Mr. Kharge said Mr. Modi, who had been flagging off the infrastructure built by the Congress during the last 70 years, was talking everywhere about “Modi’s guarantees” after stealing the concept from the Congress. He said Mr. Modi and the BJP had only been abusing the Gandhi family in the last 10 years. Ms. Vadra said the Congress manifesto, containing guarantees for farmers and other sections of society, would turn out to be the voice of the nation which wanted justice. While unemployment and inflation were at their peak, the Opposition was under a blatant attack from the BJP regime at the Centre, she said. Three rescued, 7 held as CBI busts network of infant traffickers The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has [busted a network of infant traffickers, rescuing three children]( and arresting seven accused people after searching seven locations in Delhi and Haryana. “Two male infants of just 1.5 days and 15 days and one female child of one month have also been rescued by the CBI during the operation. Incriminating articles besides ₹5.5 lakh in cash have been seized,” an agency official said. The accused have been identified as Neeraj from Haryana, and Indu Pawar, Aslam, Pooja Kashyap, Ritu, Anjali, and Kavita from different parts of Delhi. The CBI has registered a case against 10 persons under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act. They have been accused of being part of a network which trafficked infant children across the country for the purpose of adoption as well as for other illegal purposes. According to the agency, the accused used advertisements on social media platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp groups to get in touch with childless couples who were keen to adopt babies. The gang members would allegedly buy babies from their biological parents as well as from surrogate mothers and then sell these infant children at prices ranging from ₹4 lakh to ₹6 lakh per child. “These accused are also allegedly involved in duping many childless couples of lakhs of rupees by creating fake documents related to adoption,” the agency said. NIA official suffers minor injuries in attack on team at West Bengal’s Bhupatinagar A team from the National Investigation Agency ( NIA) was [attacked by locals in West Bengal’s Bhupatinagar area]( during an early morning raid in connection with the investigation of a bomb blast. An NIA official suffered minor injuries. The NIA team was visiting the area on April 6 in connection with investigation in the Bhupatinagar blast case of December 2022. The explosion due to crude bombs on December 3, 2022, had claimed three lives. Officials today arrested two key conspirators “amid stiff resistance from an unruly crowd in the state’s East Medinipore district.” “The duo, Balai Charan Maity and Manobrata Jana, were arrested after extensive searches at five locations, including the house of Jana, where acrowd of local residents tried to obstruct the NIA team,” the agency said in a press release. “One NIA team member suffered minor injury and the agency’s official vehicle was also damaged as some miscreants in the crowd assaulted them. The aggressive crowd tried to stop the NIA team and its security component from moving towards Bhupatinagar police station to complete the arrest formalities,” it added. After the NIA detained two persons at Bhupatinagar, a group of locals gathered around the vehicle carrying the NIA officials, held protests, and allegedly threw stones at the vehicle. The NIA produced the two arrested before a court in Kolkata. Poll roundup - The Communist Party of India (CPI) on April 6 [released its manifesto]( for the upcoming Lok Sabha election, calling for a change of government at the Centre. “Unemployment and price rise have become the biggest woes for the people. BJP’s rule has resulted in unprecedented concentration of wealth at the top while the poor are pushed to destitution,” said party general secretary D. Raja. - Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has [questioned the “reprehensible silence” of the Congress on the issue of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act]( in its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Speaking to mediapersons at Cherthala in Alappuzha, Mr. Vijayan said that unlike the Congress, the manifesto of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) had pledged to scrap “draconian laws” such as the CAA, Prevention of Money Laundering Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, among others. In Brief The Leh Apex Body has [withdrawn their proposed march]( to the Changthang border with China on April 7, saying it is doing so in the interest of people even as it accused the administration of turning Leh into a “war zone”. The LAB said they have already achieved their objective of creating awareness among the people of the country about the plight of farmers. They said the farmers are losing prime pasture land to huge industrial plants in the south and “Chinese encroachments” in the north. They said they will continue their peaceful peaceful agitation in support of their various demands, especially statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion in the sixth schedule of the Constitution. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [Sign up for free]( Today’s Top Picks [[CAA Rules open the door to dual citizenship by not requiring renunciation of previous citizenship, anti-CAA petitioners tell SC] CAA Rules open the door to dual citizenship by not requiring renunciation of previous citizenship, anti-CAA petitioners tell SC]( [[Kamal Haasan’s ‘Indian 2’ to release in June] Kamal Haasan’s ‘Indian 2’ to release in June]( [[‘The First Omen’ movie review: This deliciously scary prequel is a franchise reviver] ‘The First Omen’ movie review: This deliciously scary prequel is a franchise reviver]( [[China may misuse AI to target elections in India, U.S. to boost geopolitical interests: Microsoft] China may misuse AI to target elections in India, U.S. to boost geopolitical interests: Microsoft]( Copyright© 2024, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. If you are facing any trouble in viewing this newsletter, please [click here]( Manage your newsletter subscription preferences [here]( If you do not wish to receive such emails [go here](