Jaipur, Oct 18 Congress veteran Ashok Gehlot on Sunday demanded an unconditional apology from Rajasthan BJP president Madan Rathore over his controversial “support Pakistan if Pak-US war breaks out” remark, saying the saffron leader’s repeated clarifications were only making matters worse.
Rathore should apologise sincerely and express regret without any conditions, the former Rajasthan chief minister said.
“But instead of apologising, he is blaming the media and asking why journalists are cornering him. The media is not putting words into his mouth. It is only showing what he actually said,” Gehlot said.
At an event in Jaipur last week, Rathore said, “If a war breaks out between America and Pakistan today, we will stand with Pakistan because it is our neighbour. But when it comes to our differences, we stand with India.”
Facing a backlash, Rathore later claimed that he was referring to a “cricket match” between the US and Pakistan, not a war. The state BJP chief also claimed that his remarks had been distorted and taken out of context.
Gehlot said Rathore’s intention, or the context of his remarks, might have been different, but any reference to Pakistan reminds people of the 2019 Pulwama terror attack and other incidents in Jammu and Kashmir.
“People cannot forget the killings in terrorist attacks linked to Pakistan. There is widespread anger over his (Rathore’s) remarks,” he said.
The senior leader also said that Congress workers held demonstrations across Rajasthan on Saturday following a call by the Pradesh Congress Committee, and the BJP will not be able to contain the public anger until Rathore apologises and explains himself to the people.
(PTI News)
