India’s terrorism strategy on combatting well-received in S Africa: All-party delegation

Johannesburg, May 30 (PTI) India's security strategy for combating terrorism after the Pahalgam attack has received widespread support from South African political leaders across all parties, as well as from civic society, according to an all-party Indian delegation.

The all-party Indian delegation led by NCP MP Supriya Sule was on a visit to South Africa from May 27-29 to put forth India’s stance on combating terror emanating from Pakistan in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, met leaders of the African National Congress (ANC), a part of the ruling coalition.

At a media briefing here on Thursday following three days of meetings across the country, Sule said that the delegation met with several Parliamentary bodies in Cape Town as well as senior government ministers and other party leaders there and in Johannesburg afterwards.

“They were very productive interactions and they all agreed with us that they were committed to India’s cause of zero-tolerance to any terrorism anywhere in the world,” Sule said.

Apart from Sule, the delegation comprises BJP leaders Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Anurag Thakur and V Muraleedharan, Congress leaders Manish Tewari and Anand Sharma, TDP leader Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu, AAP leader Vikramjeet Singh Sahney, and former diplomat Syed Akbaruddin.

“We found it very encouraging. They were on the same page. Many of those who we engaged expressed their solidarity with the Indian people and society. There was an overwhelming opinion and consensus that emerged during the discussions that the international community has to be united against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” Muraleedharan said.

Thakur shared that six similar multi-party groups traversing the globe have received similar support.

“Whatever we have seen from the reports, anywhere the other delegations have gone, on the issue of terrorism, majority of people have come in favour, because it is not a threat not only to India but a threat to the world,” Thakur said.

Replying to a question on whether India was open to Pakistan’s suggestion of entering into dialogue, Rudy said there were firm conditions to this.

“Unless they get rid of their terror; unless and until they restrain their terror completely and eliminate them, there is no question of a conversation. We have already taken several steps and that will continue till the time we find a semblance of sensibility coming to them,” Rudy said.

Tewari said that India would not accept any mediation by a third party.

“Over four decades ago, when India and Pakistani entered into a similar agreement, it was made absolutely clear that whatever conversations, if at all any, have to take place between India and Pakistan were done, they had to be done in a bilateral forum,” Tewari said.

Tewari said India has never accepted any third-party intervention, mediation, arbitration or dispute resolution.

Responding to a question on why India had not rather gone to the UN and shared its message with all countries of the world in one go, Akbaruddin said, “The UN which was formed in the last century does not have an approach to counter-terrorism in the manner that we are facing now.

He added that India had sensitised a UN subcommittee dealing with terrorists.

“We had a team of experts go there and explain to them about how we could designate the terrorist organisation which is called the Resistance Front, which took responsibility for this attack. We have provided them that information,” Akbaruddin said.

Akbaruddin said India has changed its doctrine in terms of engagement with Pakistan.

“We want everybody to know that going forward, there is going to be a change in our approach. This is a form of preventive diplomacy. We don’t want you to be surprised should something happen again in India and our response is the way we have explained." The delegation, which had been to Qatar before South Africa, left for Ethiopia on Friday on its next leg before going to Egypt as the fourth and last country it would address. PTI FH NSA NSA