Pakistan’s Energy Minister Awais Leghari tweeted, “India’s reckless suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty is an act of water warfare.”
- New Delhi: Days after the gruesome Pahalgam terror attack claimed 26 innocent lives, India took a decisive step by suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, a move that seems to have left Pakistan reeling and scrambling for international sympathy. Pakistan has responded with outrage and melodrama, accusing India of launching “water warfare.”
- The accusation comes from Pakistan’s Energy Minister Awais Leghari, who tweeted, “India’s reckless suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty is an act of water warfare; a cowardly, illegal move. Every drop is ours by right, and we will defend it with full force – legally, politically, and globally.”
- Pakistan’s top security body, the National Security Committee (NSC), convened an emergency meeting to assess India’s sweeping retaliatory actions following the brutal Pahalgam terror attack, which left 26 civilians dead.
- The attack, claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF) an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba has triggered a series of unprecedented diplomatic and strategic moves from New Delhi.
- India Hits Back: Diplomats Expelled, Borders Shut, Treaty Suspended
- In a firm message to Islamabad, the Indian government has expelled Pakistani diplomats and defence officials from the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi, shut the Wagah-Attari land border, and revoked all SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) privileges.
- Further, India has suspended the Indus Waters Treaty a landmark 1960 agreement brokered by the World Bank under which India, as the upper riparian state, provides Pakistan with 80% of the water from the Indus river system. The suspension could severely impact Pakistan’s agriculture sector, which relies heavily on this water.
- Pakistan Dismisses Allegations, Cries ‘Political Ploy’
- Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar rejected India’s accusations as “baseless,” challenging New Delhi to present evidence. “If India has any evidence on the Pahalgam attack, it should present it,” he told the media, claiming the moves were politically motivated.
- “This is nothing but a political ploy. India is trying to blame Pakistan for its own failures,” Dar was quoted by Samaa TV. He also vowed that Pakistan would respond to every action by the Modi-led government “word by word.”
- Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif also hit out, calling India’s suspension of the treaty a “pressure tactic” and threatening a “strong and effective” response. “They have long wanted to exit the Indus Waters Treaty. But the World Bank is a party to this. India cannot make this decision alone,” he said.
