BJP taunts Sharad Pawar over support to Hamas

Slamming Sharad Pawar for supporting Palestine in conflict with Israel, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday said he thinks the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief will send his daughter and Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule to Gaza to fight for Palestine-based terror group Hamas.

Asked about Pawar’s reported criticism of the government for “standing with Israel” despite India’s long-term support for Palestine, Sarma was quoted as saying by news agency ANI, “I think Sharad Pawar will send Supriya (Sule) to Gaza to fight for the Hamas,” the CM told ANI.

The BJP leader further said that there are some people in India who are giving clean chit to the Hamas as they can’t see anything beyond appeasement.

#WATCH | Delhi: On NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s reported statement regarding India’s stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma says, “I think Sharad Pawar will send Supriya (Sule) to Gaza to fight for the Hamas.” pic.twitter.com/JrTWwIOM9T— ANI (@ANI) October 18, 2023

Pawar, who served as India’s defence minister from 1991 to 1993 under the then prime minister PV Narasimha Rao, recently said he did not believe that the Indian government had sided 100 per cent with Israel amid its war with Hamas.

Earlier in the day, Union Ministers Piyush Goyal and Nitin Gadkari also teared into Pawar and termed his remark a “casual view” on issues relating to terror and said that the gravity of the situation necessitates a unified front against terrorism, irrespective of political affiliations or personal opinions.

Pawar, the former Maharashtra chief minister, had said that the Israel-Palestine issue is “serious and sensitive”, and views of Muslim countries like Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates and other nations cannot be ignored.

On October 8, a day after Hamas launched its incursions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed solidarity with Israel and condemned “terrorist” attacks. “Deeply shocked by the news of terrorist attacks in Israel. Our thoughts and prayers are with the innocent victims and their families. We stand in solidarity with Israel at this difficult hour,” Modi had said on X (formally Twitter).

Sarma also alleged that the Congress did not condemn the Hamas and declared its support for Palestine at the insistence of party leader Rahul Gandhi, keeping an eye on the coming assembly elections in Telangana.

“See there was a CWC meeting (recently). The issue of Hamas was discussed there. Everyone said at the meeting that it is necessary to condemn Hamas at this point of time. But Rahul Gandhi said that election in Telangana is coming so we should support Palestine. I am telling you the inside story of the CWC. After that this resolution was passed,” he told reporters in Delhi.

With inputs from News18

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