'PoK belongs to India and...', Amit Shah reiterates amid 'atom bomb' remarks

Amit Shah's assertion comes amidst controversy sparked by veteran Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's remarks regarding Pakistan's nuclear arsenal.

Home Minister Amit Shah, in a resolute address delivered at a public meeting in Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareli on May 12, emphatically declared India's sovereignty over Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), firmly rejecting any notions of relinquishing the territory despite Pakistan's possession of nuclear capabilities.

Speaking to a gathered crowd, Shah posed a question, "I want to ask you, if Pakistan has atom bombs, should we leave PoK?" He further reinforced India's stance on the matter, stating unequivocally, "I promise you today, we don't get scared of atom bombs, PoK belongs to India and no one can take it away from us."

Also speaking during an election rally in Pratapgarh, Shah asserted that while Rahul Gandhi may be intimidated by Pakistan's "atom bomb," the BJP is not.

Shah's assertion comes amidst controversy sparked by veteran Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's remarks regarding Pakistan's nuclear arsenal. Aiyar courted controversy for saying Pakistan is a respected nation that also possesses an atomic bomb so India should engage in a dialogue with them. He had made this statement earlier in a show.

"They are also a sovereign country (Pakistan). They are a respected nation. You can talk tough with them (Pakistan). But start the dialogue. You are walking with a gun that yielded nothing tensions are escalating," said the former diplomat.

"They have atom bombs. We have them too, but if a ‘madman’ decides to drop a bomb on Lahore, it won’t take eight seconds for the radiation to reach Amritsar," he added.

Earlier, during a scathing critique of Congress and its leaders on May 11 in Hyderabad, Shah alleged that the party is willing to forfeit India's rights over Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) due to apprehensions regarding Pakistan's possession of nuclear weapons. Shah reminisced about former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's decision to conduct nuclear tests at Pokhran on the same day in 1998, marking India's entry into the nuclear club. Accusing Congress of lacking the resolve to execute surgical strikes and airstrikes, Shah credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi with swiftly responding to terrorist attacks by Pakistani militants through such military actions within a span of ten days.

Prior to the Rae Bareli address, Shah had also criticised the Congress and its allies at an election rally in Jharkhand's Khunti on May 10, reaffirming the BJP's stance that every inch of PoK belongs to India.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking at a rally in Odisha's Kandhamal on May 11, mocked Pakistan's economy, highlighting its struggle to find buyers for its atom bombs due to their perceived low quality.