Former foreign minister and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has declared that there would be another war if India blocks any of three Pakistani rivers and “country’s forces are in a position to defeat New Delhi again”, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Speaking in the National Assembly on Monday, Bilawal Bhutto said that Indus Waters Treaty can’t be suspended unilaterally and if India tries build a dam on any of the three Pakistani rivers, then there would be another war.
“India has two options: Either to accept Indus Waters Treaty or go to war. If there is a war the water of all six rivers will then flow to Pakistan,” he maintained.
Referring to India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bilawal said he was the copy of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu whom Pakistan defeated during recent military confrontation.
PPP chairman categorically stated that there could not be unilateral suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, and added that if India tried to build dams on three rivers, there would be a war with India. “India has two options: either to remain party to the treaty or get ready for a war. And in the event of a war, the water of all six rivers will belong to Pakistan.”
He added that the armed forces of Pakistan were again in a position to teach India a lesson.
Referring to the former prime minister and PTI founder Imran Khan, Bilawal said that he was reluctant to attack India. “During the tenure of the present government, however, six Indian fighter jets were downed,” he said, adding, “When Imran was the PM, India would say that Kashmir was its internal issue; now, however, the issue has been resolved.”
He said that India made efforts to get Pakistan declared a ‘terrorist state.’ “It even tried to keep the IMF from giving loan to Pakistan.”
He went on to say that the US President Donald Trump not even invited Field Marshal Asim Munir to visit the country, but even hosted a lunch in his honour.
That lunch, he said, was the acknowledgment of Pakistan’s victory against India in recent confrontation.
The PPP chairman, however, said that the betterment of the people of both India and Pakistan lay in peace.
Bilawal Bhutto mentioned that the defence budget has been enhanced by 20 percent in view of India’s hostile posture.
He said Pakistan has once again internationalized the Kashmir dispute.
Referring to the visit of a high-level delegation led by him to various capitals, Bilawal Bhutto said Pakistan has defeated India on the battlefield, as well as on the diplomatic and narrative fronts. He said they presented Pakistan’s stance and narrative based on peace.
He said India has only two options: either to comply with the Indus Waters Treaty or Pakistan will wage a war to secure water from all the six rivers.
Condemning US and Israel’s attack on Iran, Bilawal Bhutto that the Israeli aggression was a violation of international law. He said that Iran’s sovereignty should not have been challenged.
He further said that Pakistan’s narrative was of peace.
Bilawal said that unfortunately PTI’s sole demand was the release of Imran Khan. “The party should stop linking Imran Khan’s released with every issue. A change in its strategy will benefit the PTI,” he opined.
He said there was a lobby in the country that believed that building dams was the solution to every issue confronting the country.
He announced that the PPP would support the federal budget.
He said that the country’s economy had improved courtesy the policies introduced by the government especially the inflation has come down.
The PPP chairman demanded the imposition of agriculture emergency in the country, and added that making a farmer prosperous was the need of the hour.
He asked the federal government to grant funds to the governments of KP and Balochistan.
Bilawal also demanded that south Punjab be given a share in the PSDP.
He said his party was consulted on the budget this time and some of its inputs have been incorporated in the budget. He was appreciative of the government for expressing consent to PPP’s recommendations including leaving digital tax on services to the jurisdiction of the provinces and reducing sales tax on solar panels to ten percent from eighteen percent.
Bilawal expressed satisfaction over improvement in economic indicators, especially reduction in inflation as a result of government’s policies. He commended twenty percent increase in the budget of Benazir Income Support Programme.
Reporter Rozina Ali