Person who solves Kashmir issue will be worthy of Nobel Peace Prize: Pak PM Imran Khan
Islamabad, Mar 4: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday said the person who solves the Kashmir issue will be worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize, days after a resolution was submitted in Parliament endorsing him for the prestigious award, citing his "efforts to de-escalate" tensions with India.
"I am not worthy of the Nobel Peace prize. The person worthy of this would be the one who solves the Kashmir dispute according to the wishes of the Kashmiri people and paves the way for peace & human development in the subcontinent," the premier tweeted.
Khan's party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf also tweeted the prime minister's statement in Hindi in an unusual move.
On March 2, a resolution was submitted in Pakistan's National Assembly Secretariat stating that Khan's decision of releasing Indian Air Force pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman has de-escalated the hostility between Pakistan and India.
According to the resolution, Khan "acted responsibly" in the current tension and "deserves the Nobel Peace Prize".
After the Pulwama attack, the Indian Air Force carried out a counter-terror operation, hitting what it said was a JeM training camp in Balakot, deep inside Pakistan on February 26. The next day, Pakistan retaliated with a large air formation, comprising 24 fighter jets, including F-16s.
Varthaman, who was in one of the eight MiG-21s that took on the invading Pakistan Air Force jets and shot down an F-16, was captured by Pakistan.
Khan during a joint session of Parliament on February 28 announced to release the IAF pilot as a "gesture of peace" and the "first step" to open negotiations with India.
Varthaman was released at the Wagah border on Friday.
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Rickelton's ton in vain as SRH beat MI by 6 wickets
Mumbai (PTI): Ryan Rickelton's whirlwind unbeaten ton was overshadowed by Heinrich Klaasen's unbeaten 65 as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets in an IPL match here on Wednesday.
Chasing an imposing 244-run target, Travis Head (76 off 30) and Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24) shared 129 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for SRH.
Klaasen (65 not out off 30 balls) then displayed his all-round hitting abilities to guide SRH home with the help of Nitish Kumar Reddy (21) and Salil Arora (30 not out off 10) in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, Rickelton's knock powered MI to 243 for five.
MI rode on a 93-run stand between Rickelton (123 not out off 55 balls) and Will Jacks (46 off 22) in 7.1 overs for the opening stand to power the side.
MI skipper Hardik Pandya scored a valuable 31 off 15 balls before being dismissed.
Praful Hinge (2/54), Eshan Malinga (1/29), Sakib Hasan (1/39) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/31) were the wicket-takers for SRH.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indian: 243 for 5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out; Praful Hinge 2/54).
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 249 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out; AM Ghazanfar 2/51).
