Row over Siddhu’s visit to Pakistan to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Imran Khan
The recently concluded visit of the former Indian cricketer and current minister in the Punjab government Navjot Singh Siddhu to Pakistan to attend the swearing-in ceremony of his friend and former Pakistani cricketing legend Imran Khan has sparked an intense debate in the political corridors in India.
Many people have called his decision to attend the swearing-in ceremony as unpatriotic and insensitive, particularly at a time when the relations between India and Pakistan are under strain with the intermittent cross-border firing and the killings of the soldiers on the border.
Some leaders of the BJP and RSS have chastised this visit of Siddhu for being disrespectful to late former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee when the entire nation grieved at his demise. Siddhu has received even much flak for hugging the General of Pakistan Army Qamar Javed Bajwa who is the chief of the very army responsible for the killing of Indian soldiers on the border. Even the Chief Minister of Punjab Captain Amarinder Singh has also slammed Siddhu for hugging the army chief of Pakistan.
The refusal of Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar to go to Pakistan to attend the swearing-in ceremony has put Siddhu under much more criticism for having prioritized the friendship over the national interest. As along with Siddhu, two former cricketing legends of India Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar had also been sent the invitation to attend the oath-taking ceremony of their friend and former Pakistani cricketing legend Imran Khan, whose party recently swept the polls in Pakistan’s general elections.
But both Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar didn’t prefer to attend the swearing ceremony of their longtime friend, against whom they played international cricket for so many years, citing some reasons and other commitments. Their unwillingness to attend the oath-taking ceremony of Imran Khan is thought to be a decision taken after a lot of deliberation and keeping in mind the hostile relations between India and Pakistan.
While on the other hand, there are people who have backed the Siddhu’s visit to Pakistan saying that if the Prime Minister of India can visit Pakistan on earlier occasions, then why can’t the Navjot Singh Siddhu. They say that Siddhu’s visit to Pak to attend the oath-taking ceremony is a not only a friendly gesture but also a Nobel attempt to bring the two antagonizing countries closer to each other and restore the peace and stability across the borders. Siddhu himself has already spoken very highly of Imran Khan as a leader with the potential and commitment to establish amiable and brotherly relations between India and Pakistan.
His supports and those backing his visit to Pakistan argue that attending his friend’s swearing-in ceremony and hugging the Pakistan army Chief and not attending the late Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Siddhu has not shown any disrespect towards the former Prime Minister rather he has only been carrying forward the legacy of Atal Bihar Vajpayee’s attempt to bring the peace between India and Pakistan.
What do you think of Siddhu’s decision to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Pakistan’s PM Imran Khan? Can it be justified when the Indian soldiers continue to be killed at the border and the nation mourns the demise of Atal Bihari Vajpayee?
Currently, I am pursuing B.A(H) Political science from Satyawati College, Delhi University.
I like public speaking, writing and reading in my leisure.
