Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Pakistan was yet to come to terms with the setback of surgical strikes and was damaging itself by fighting India.
“Earlier, (Pakistani) soldiers were unable to show their valor despite having the strength. But now Pakistan has seen strength of our brave soldiers after they carried out surgical strikes in 250-km area across the LoC,” PM Modi said while addressing a public rally.
He went on to say that Pakistan was taken aback by the courage of the Indian forces and was yet to come to terms with it.
Reaching out to the people in Pakistan, PM Modi said, “125 crore Indians mourned when terrorists attacked a school in Peshawar and killed children. Every Indian felt the pain of the people in Pakistan.”
Reiterating that people in Pakistan should ask their rulers to fight black money and corruption rather than fighting India, PM Modi said, “By fighting against India they (Pakistan) are damaging themselves.”
“Pakistani people also want freedom from poverty. For the sake of political benefits this atmosphere has been created by them,” he added.
Prime Minister Modi was speaking at the foundation stone laying ceremony of AIIMS in Bathinda.
“Our farmers have the right over the water that flows through Indus. The government has formed a task force to see what can be done to make maximum use of water that flows to Pakistan under the Indus Water Treaty,” he said.
He also said he would stop “every drop” of Indus water from going to Pakistan, and that he would keep it for the farmers of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and (the rest of) India.
“The fields of our farmers must have adequate water. Water that belongs to India cannot be allowed to go to Pakistan,” he said.
He took a dig at previous governments, saying, “Water kept flowing into Pakistan and governments in Delhi came, went, slept, and my farmers kept crying.”
The PM then had a few words of advice for India’s north-western neighbour.
