Wake Up Before Its Too Late, Khan Urges World

Aamir Qureshi—AFP

In tweet, Pakistan’s prime minister warns militias born of hate always end in genocide

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday urged the international community to “wake up” before the actions of the Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh group result in a genocide of Muslims in India.

Reacting to a tweet of lawyer Suchitra Vijayan, in which she compared a RSS training march from Telangana to “Nazis in khaki uniform,” Khan said the group’s actions could provoke a crisis that “will dwarf other genocides.”

Posting his message in English and Urdu, the prime minister exhorted the international community to end its silence. “The international community should wake up before RSS on the move leads to genocide of Muslims that will dwarf other genocides,” he said. “Whenever militants like Hitler’s Brown Shirts or RSS are formed, based upon hatred of a certain community, it always ends in genocide,” he added.

India has been rocked by at-times deadly protest since Dec. 12, when Delhi passed the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019, which fast-tracks citizenship for non-Muslim migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who moved to the country before 2015. Critics say the law discriminates against Muslims, and is a sign of the eroding secularism that has long been enshrined in India’s constitution. Modi and his government deny this.

At least 25 people have died across India since the demonstrations started. Authorities have imposed emergency laws, blocked internet access, and shut down shops in sensitive areas in a bid to contain the unrest. Protesters, however, have vowed to defy the law to make their voices heard.

Separately, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi also issued a statement calling on the world to take notice of “India’s mischievous activities.” He said the people of India had rejected the extremist mindset of P.M. Narendra Modi, and warned that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government was bent upon destroying peace in the region.

Qureshi also condemned the Indian army’s unprovoked ceasefire violations on the Line of Control, saying these were an attempt to divert attention from the domestic unrest resulting from the passage of the controversial Citizenship Act.