Legal activist and BJP senior leader Subramanian Swamy today came down heavily on former cricketer and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu for showing the willingness to attend Pakistan Prime Minister-designate Imran Khan’s swearing-in ceremony.
Mujhe nahi lagta vo sthir dimag ke hain.Thoda bhi santulan dimag mein hai to Pak nahi jayenge. Ye unke liye rajnetik career mein bada nuksan hoga.Isko log gaddari samjhenge,koi maaf nahi karega:S Swamy on Navjot S Sidhu attending Pak PM designate Imran Khan’s oath-taking ceremony pic.twitter.com/9TfqunJ1m3
— ANI (@ANI) August 14, 2018
Swamy said that he thinks Sidhu appears to have an unstable mind and if there is even a little bit of balance in his mind, he would not go to Pakistan. This would harm his political career, Swamy said. ‘He would be considered as a traitor and no one would forgive him’, he said.
Imran Khan’s party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won the recently concluded elections in Pakistan and Khan was hailed as a new poster boy for the so-called liberals. However, Khan, who has also earned the monicker Taliban Khan for his pro-Taliban views, has often shown his soft stand against terrorism. Khan has proven that he is a terrorist sympathiser and also has extreme religious views where he wants to make Pakistan an Islamic welfare state.
Meanwhile, Congress leader and a minister in Punjab government Navjot Singh Sidhu has shown a keen interest in participating in Khan’s swearing-in. Congress leaders have justified the intentions of their party leaders attending the swearing-in at Pakistan as the invite is in their personal capacity.
If he (Imran khan) is inviting his friends in a personal capacity and I think if they go, then why should anyone object? They are entitled to go: Rajiv Sukhla on Imran Khan inviting Navjot Singh Sidhu in his swearing in ceremony in Pakistan pic.twitter.com/L6Z31vuxhy
— ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2018
Former cricketer Kapil Dev who had led India to cricket world cup victory in 1983, too had shown a keen interest in joining Sidhu to Pakistan.
I haven’t checked yet about the invitation, but if I will get the invite then I will surely go there(Pakistan) for the oath ceremony( of Imran Khan), considering Govt approval: Kapil Dev to ANI (file pic) pic.twitter.com/n3jyDSlFY3
— ANI (@ANI) August 2, 2018
However, Kapil Dev, as well as Sunil Gavaskar, have now turned down the invite to attend Imran Khan’s swearing-in ceremony.