Congress condemns Chinese envoy's pitch for India-China-Pakistan trilateral meet
New Delhi, June 18: The Congress "strongly condemned" Chinese Ambassador to India Luo Zhaohui's pitch on Monday for an India-China-Pakistan trilateral meeting under the SCO framework, and called on the government to do the same.
The party also said that all outstanding issues between India and Pakistan will have to be resolved bilaterally in terms of the spirit of the Shimla agreement.
Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said: "We strongly condemn the statement of the Chinese ambassador. We expect the government of India to strongly condemn this unwarranted suggestion which has been made by the Chinese Ambassador.
"It seems that the Chinese ambassador is not cognizant about the India-Pakistan paradigm. We have maintained and continue to maitain that whatever issues or whatever outstanding issues there are with Pakistan have to be resolved in a bilateral format."
"There is absolutely no place for any third party intervention in so far as India and Pakistan and its outstanding disputes are concerned.
"This has been the consistent position of governments across different administrations from 1972 onwards when the Shimla agreement was signed.
"There is absolutely no scope of any third party intervention and we stand by the spirit of the Shimla agreement as well as the resolution passed by the Indian Parliament in 1994 and 2013 respectively," he added.
On the Chinese Ambassador saying bilateral ties between India and China can't take the strain of another Doklam episode, Tewari said: "Doklam did not happen in Pakistani territory. The stand-off happened in Bhutanese territory. How is the statement even relevant to what transpired in Doklam."
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Chandrashekhar Swamiji apologises for remark on denying voting rights to Muslims
"If my statement has upset our Muslim brothers, I deeply regret it."
Bengaluru: Kumara Chandrashekharanath Swamiji, head of the Vishva Okkaliga Mahasansthana Mutt, has expressed regret over his controversial statement suggesting that "Muslims should be denied voting rights."
In a press release, Swamiji clarified, "Muslims are also citizens of this country. Like everyone else, they too have voting rights. If my statement yesterday has caused discomfort to our Muslim brothers, I sincerely apologise for it."
He further added, "Okkaligas are inherently tolerant of all religions. We have always treated people of every faith equally. Our Mutt maintains cordial relations with Muslims, and they frequently visit us. Similarly, we attend their weddings and other joyous occasions. Hence, there is no intolerance towards this community." Swamiji appealed to the public to disregard the controversy surrounding his remark.
The controversial statement was made during a farmers' rally, ‘Raita Gharjana,’ organised by the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh, Karnataka Pradesh, at Freedom Park, Bengaluru, on Tuesday. Addressing the gathering, Swamiji had said, "A law should be enacted to deny voting rights to the Muslim community, and the Wakf Board should be abolished."
The remark drew widespread criticism from political leaders and the public alike. Following the backlash, Swamiji issued his apology, stating, "Muslims are also citizens of this country. Like everyone else, they too have voting rights. If my statement yesterday has caused discomfort to our Muslim brothers, I sincerely apologise for it."
