Cong's Supriya Shrinate asks if India has accepted third party mediation on Kashmir

Lucknow: The Congress on Tuesday sought to know whether India has accepted the mediation of any third party on Kashmir and if "trade triumphed over terror".

Shrinate's remarks come a day after President Donald Trump reiterated his claim that his administration stopped a "nuclear conflict" between India and Pakistan, telling the South Asian neighbours that America will do a "lot of trade" with them if they end hostilities. India and Pakistan reached an understanding on Saturday to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.

Speaking to PTI Videos in Lucknow, AICC spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said, "It is true that we are proud of our Army's valour which defeated Pakistan. But we did not get any answers in the prime minister's 22-minute speech.

"US President Donald Trump had spoken sometime before that and said he got the ceasefire done by using trade threats. Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) did not clarify whether you (PM) were really under pressure from the US. Why are they repeatedly saying that they got the ceasefire done?" Secondly, she emphasised that Trump had in his speech said he would mediate in Kashmir. She asked whether India had accepted the mediation of any third party because to date the country has completely rejected any third-party interference.

"The third thing the US statement said is that both the prime ministers of India and Pakistan will meet at a neutral venue. Is he going to meet the PM of Pakistan? Are we going to open diplomatic channels? There was no answer to these," the Congress leader said.

Shrinate said the prime minister claimed that the Army took such an aggressive action that Pakistan was devastated.

"So, at such a time when Pakistan was flustered, under whose pressure did we do all this? she asked.

The Congress leader said one more thing that the prime minister did not answer was what happened to the dreaded terrorists who carried out ruthless killings in Pahalgam.

"It is absolutely correct that the Army destroyed many terror camps. Apart from that, our BSF jawan Purnam Sahu has been in Pakistan custody for almost the 20th day. What action has been taken to free him and bring him back," Shrinate said.

She claimed that the government admitted that there was an intelligence failure in Pahalgam and sought to know those responsible for this.

"Is Home Minister Amit Shah responsible for this or Prime Minister Narendra Modi jee? These are a lot of questions that the country is asking because the US statement repeatedly challenges our sovereignty.

"They are somewhere raising questions on our Independence and our sovereignty. Who is the US to mediate between us as we have not allowed anyone to come to Kashmir to date (for mediation)? Who is the US to tell that we (the US) got the ceasefire done? Did we do it under someone's pressure? Did trade triumph over terror, that is the question which the entire nation wants to know," the Congress leader said.

In his address, Trump said, "On Saturday, my administration helped broker a full and immediate ceasefire, I think, a permanent one between India and Pakistan, ending a dangerous conflict of two nations with lots of nuclear weapons," Trump said at the start of a press conference in the White House where he announced that he will set 30-day deadline for drugmakers to lower cost of prescription drugs.

He started the briefing by describing the "historic events" that took place over the last few days in the Indian subcontinent.

Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai told PTI Videos that when Modi addressed the nation, the entire country wanted him to say the "ceasefire" was announced by Trump.

"You are the prime minister of the country, you run the country and the people have elected you. You should have said in the address that this announcement was made by Donald Trump. The coward terrorists who killed the husbands of our sisters should be definitely eliminated," Rai, who had unsuccessfully contested against Modi from the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency in the last parliamentary elections, said.

Congress MP from Barabanki Tanuj Punia told PTI Videos said the US informed that a "ceasefire" had taken place and asked, "Could the prime minister or our officers not tell us? The interference of the US in our sovereign matters is wrong.

"At this time, the whole country remembers Indira Gandhi, who took action against Pakistan and created Bangladesh and did not listen to the US. Today, a strong leadership is needed." Punia said the entire Congress party is with the government which should take strong steps. He asserted that India is competent to make its own decisions.