Masood Azhar declared global terrorist by UNSC: Here’s how Indian politicians reacted to the news

Masood Azhar declared global terrorist by UNSC: Here’s how Indian politicians reacted to the news

Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) chief Masood Azhar was on Wednesday unanimously declared a global terrorist by the powerful United Nations Security Council (UNSC), setting the stage for strong legal action against the Pakistan-based terrorist. India has accused JeM of orchestrating the attack on parliament and more recently the Pulwama massacre in which more than 40 CRPF jawans were martyred.

Following the UN verdict, several Indian politicians, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, commented on the significant outcome that India had been waiting to hear for several years.

• Welcoming the United Nation’s proscription of Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, PM Modi said India will act whenever it feels threatened by terrorists; no matter where they are hiding, it will pursue them and kill them. Modi said the UN verdict on JeM chief is a big victory in India’s fight against terrorism.
• Commenting on the UNSC listing of Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, former prime minister Manmohan Singh said he is happy that it has materialized.
• Senior BJP leader Ram Madhav said it’s a huge diplomatic victory for India. He said that everyone in the country is happy about the decision and thank the United Nations Security Council.
• Madhya Pradesh chief minister and Congress leader Kamal Nath said the decision was long due; it’s good that it has been done, although this should have happened a long time ago.
• Congress Lok Sabha candidate from Bhopal Digvijaya Singh said Pakistan now must act and heed to India’s request to hand over Azhar’s custody to the Indian agencies for facing trial in the country. It should also do the same in the case of Dawood Ibrahim and Hafiz Saeed.
• Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the UN verdict is an important achievement in India’s fight against terrorism. He said that for the past decade, India has been making diplomatic efforts towards this goal. It’ll now help bring Masood Azhar and JeM to justice.
• National Conference leader and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah asked if the UNSC listing of Masood Azhar was possible after all references to Pulwama and terrorism in Kashmir were dropped.
• Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav congratulated the diplomatic corp. for this significant victory and said Pakistan must now immediately arrest him, freeze his assets and shut down all organisations linked to him. He said it is the first step in ensuring Masood Azhar pays for his crimes.
• Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said India stands vindicated. Masood Azhar is now a global terrorist, and India is in safe hands. This marks a high point for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy.