India Tears Into Pakistan’s ‘Fitna al Hindustan’ Narrative
New York: India harshly criticized Pakistan at the United Nations for spreading state-sponsored disinformation by labeling militant outfits operating on its soil as “Fitna al-Hindustan”.
Speaking at the United Nations Security Council session focusing on the situation in Afghanistan, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, stated that Islamabad was only trying to put the blame on New Delhi. Islamabad has previously identified multiple active militant groups under this specific name, claiming they operate under Indian rule, but has failed to provide any evidence to substantiate the claims. The Indian envoy said that this rhetoric was deliberately produced to deceive both the Pakistani people and the Pakistani public. Ambassador Harish observed: “Pakistan’s official notifications, directing government agencies to start referring to groups within its borders as ‘Fitna al Hindustan’, are nothing but officially supported misinformation and disinformation cloaked in religious terminology.”
He argued that this narrative serves as a deliberate strategy by the Pakistani establishment to maintain hostility towards India. Describing the device as “an organized hate factory”, the envoy stated that the campaign aims to distract the Pakistani people from internal political and economic crises by focusing on external enemies.
India’s representative also took aim at Pakistan’s political framework and the dominant role its military plays in governance, pointing out that recent constitutional amendments are clear indicators of increasing military dominance over civilian authorities.
Shifting its focus to regional security, New Delhi condemned Islamabad’s cross-border military operations and blamed Pakistan for significant civilian casualties resulting from airstrikes in Afghanistan.
“Let me state it once again. Presenting a massacre as a military operation does not exonerate the perpetrator. Killing, maiming and orphaning civilians is not the fight against terrorism.” The Ambassador continued: “Adopting the high principles of international law and Islamic solidarity by carrying out brutal air strikes during the holy month of Ramadan is the best example of hypocrisy.”
Ambassador Harish maintained that Pakistan has a long history of blaming its neighbors for its own internal shortcomings. This diplomatic showdown took place at a time when hostilities between Pakistan and Afghanistan had seriously escalated. Earlier this year, UN records showed Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan territory killed at least 13 civilians, including women and children, triggering the most intense border conflict between the two countries in years.
By March, the UN documented that cross-border attacks and subsequent military maneuvers killed at least 42 civilians and injured 104, while more than 100,000 people were forced to flee their homes. The friction intensified dramatically after Afghan officials claimed that a Pakistani airstrike on a drug rehabilitation center in Kabul caused more than 400 deaths; The UN has independently confirmed at least 269 deaths. Despite a brief cessation of hostilities that prevented a full-scale war, volatile conflicts continue along the common border.
