How Rajnath Singh gave a piece of his mind to Islamabad on its own turf

Rajnath Singh was in two minds whether to visit Islamabad, which has been continuously supporting Kashmiri terrorists and making anti-India noises, or not.

But the more the cowards of Hafiz Saeed variety threatened and as Nawaz Sharif openly supported Burhan Wani, the greater was the home minister's resolve to accept the challenge and give a piece of his mind to Islamabad on their own turf.

His flight arrived right on time and with the BSF pilot's "Jai Hind", he alighted at Rawalpindi to be taken to Islamabad - 14km by road. But he was surprised that citing security reasons he was flown this tiny distance by a special chopper.

The dinner hosted by India's high commissioner in Islamabad, Gautam Bambawale, was well-attended and the entire route to the Indian high commission was cleared and all traffic stopped for Rajnath Singh, till he returned.

Also read - Was Rajnath's tough-on-terror SAARC speech 'blacked out'?

Pakistan is in the grip of terror organisations, a fact all too visible.

There were subtle indications from the Pakistani side for some sort of bilateral meeting with Rajnath's counterpart, Pakistan's interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, and also with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

But Rajnath knew the Pakistani ploy and he firmly avoided it in his own inimitable way. No bilaterals with people who have been spewing venom against India and passed a resolution on Kashmir. 

As Union home minister of a billion plus democratic people, Rajnath was firm and spoke eloquently on the need to fight terrorism and to not glorify the jihadis.

"South Asia continues to be deeply affected by this malady, as witnessed most recently in cowardly terrorist attacks in Pathankot, Dhaka, Kabul and other places. Merely strong condemnation of such terrorist attacks is not enough. We must harden our resolve to eradicate this menace and also take serious steps to this end," he said.

Hitting directly at Pakistan's involvement in sheltering terror and glorifying Kashmiri terrorists, Rajnath said: "It also needs to be ensured that terrorism is not glorified and is not patronised by any state."

Also read - Rajnath's trip to Pakistan for SAARC summit will help Islamabad not India

The Pakistani delegation led by their interior minister Khan was visibly upset to hear these closing lines:

"One country's terrorist cannot be a martyr or freedom fighter for anyone. I also speak for the entire humanity - not just for India or other SAARC members - in urging that in no circumstances should terrorists be eulogised as martyrs. Those who provide support, encouragement, sanctuary, safe haven or any assistance to terrorism or terrorists must be isolated. Strongest possible steps need to be taken not only against terrorists and terrorist organisations but also those individuals, institutions, organisations or nations that support them."

Little wonder that Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan couldn't bear being exposed and showed his rudeness and in an uncivil step, moved out of the lunch, quite unbecoming of a host.

Rajnath Singh too didn't care for Khan's rudeness and had lunch in his hotel suite.

He returned two hours earlier than was scheduled as he saw no point in wasting his time with an inhospitable host.

Hafiz Saeed's demonstration against India only showed his frustration and that might earn him a few more free lunches, but his tribe has got the right message from Rajnath's firmness.

Even the day Rajnath Singh landed at Rawalpindi, goons of Hafiz Saeed were showing a typical defeatist attitude with fake protests and demonstrations, forgetting the jihad they are fanning against India is eating away Pakistani Muslims in the highest number, making it a Jihad factory using poor, illiterate and backward people as fodder for their nefarious designs.

Indian secularists, who earn praise from cowardly jihadis, would not like to examine closely how Pakistan behaves when an Indian leader visits them. Because if they support Rajnath Singh, they may lose their tickets to Pakistan.

Hafiz Saeed will meet his fate soon. His demonstrations against India only showed his frustrations and that might earn him a few more free lunches, but his tribe has got the message.