‘Disappointed’ Imran Khan Lashes Out at India’s ‘Arrogant and Negative Response’ After Cancellation of Talks

New Delhi: A day after the cancellation of the planned talks between foreign ministers of India and Pakistan, Imran Khan on Saturday said he was “disappointed at arrogant and negative response by India” to his call for “peace dialogue”.

The Pakistan CM also blamed the leadership in New Delhi for not having the “vision to see the larger picture”.

On Friday, India called off the talks between Sushma Swaraj and her Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi over the killing of three special police officers in Kashmir which India blamed on “Pakistan-based entities”.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said talks in the current circumstances would be “meaningless” and also cited stamps issued by Pakistan in July in memory of Kashmiri militant Burhan Wani as a reason for the cancellation of talks.

“Now, it is obvious that behind Pakistan’s proposal for talks to make a fresh beginning, the evil agenda of Pakistan stands exposed and the true face of the new Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan has been revealed to the world in his first few months in office. Any conversation with Pakistan in such an environment would be meaningless,” said Raveesh Kumar, MEA spokesperson.

On Thursday, agreeing to the talks, India revealed that Pakistan PM Imran Khan wrote to PM Modi seeking resumption of dialogue between the two neighbours. In a letter dated September 14, the cricketer-turned-politician, who became the prime minister last month, proposed a meeting between Qureshi and Swaraj.

The Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue stalled after the January 2016 terror strike on the Pathankot airbase.