It was a study in contrasts when Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke at the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, and an hour later Pakistan PM Imran Khan spoke from the same podium.

Modi’s speech in Hindi was measured, and it outlined the vision of his government. The Prime Minister spoke like a true statesman, a world leader with clear views on world peace and global climate change. His speech outlined India’s intention of leading the world on several global issues including climate change and terrorism.
Modi spoke about India’s thousand-years-old civilization and said, India never initiated war (Yudh) in its long history, it gave the world Buddha, the apostle of peace and non-violence. The Prime Minister appealed to the world comity of nations to unite in the fight against the evil of terrorism. He also appealed to the world powers to join hands in tackling climate change and eradicating poverty.

While doing so, Modi outlined the achievements of his government in the fields of social welfare, like Swachh Bharat, LPG connections to poor families, digital identification for all, inclusive banking for all, ban on single use plastic, solar alliance and free medical care.

Narendra Modi did the right thing in avoiding any mention of Kashmir and Pakistan. Kashmir is naturally our internal matter, and at most, it may be a bilateral issue. By not naming Pakistan, Modi gave a clear message: India has the potential to deal with Pakistan on its own. There is no need for third party mediation nor is there any necessity of raising this at an international forum.

Even as Indians outside the UN headquarters were expressing joy over Modi’s speech, Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan, appearing dejected, began his rambling speech that went on for 48 minutes. Imran Khan was supposed to speak for 15 minutes, but he went on an on, speaking about Islamic terrorism. Modi, Kashmir and nuclear warfare, and the red light blinked continuously for 33 minutes.

There was nothing new in Imran’s speech. People, particularly world leaders, have already heard him saying this over and over again, and there was nothing new. Imran Khan had already said a day ago that he was disappointed with the international community on Kashmir issue.

During his long speech, Imran’s gestures, body language and choice of words clearly showed that he was disappointed. The overall image of Pakistan as a nation surely has taken a beating, because its Prime Minister was speaking as if he was addressing a public rally in Pakistan. This was an international forum where world leaders are expected to present their vision about their country and the world, but the Pakistani Prime Minister launched into a tirade against Modi, RSS and India.

Imagine what the people of Pakistan must be thinking, when they saw their Prime Minister failing to present his vision of progress for his own country. I want to say this again, Imran will have a lot to answer for, when he returns to Pakistan.

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