Intolerance at Pakistan behest: Minister

Haryana minister Anil Vij on Tuesday gave a new twist to the intolerance issue, alleging some people were raking it up at Pakistan’s behest to thwart India’s chances of getting permanent membership of the UN Security Council.

The senior minister also termed actor Aamir Khan’s remarks on the intolerance issue as “unnecessary and untimely” and urged him to review it.

“In our country, some people are raking up intolerance issue at Pakistan’s behest. They are trying to build an atmosphere to thwart our chances of getting permanent membership of the UN Security Council,” the health and sports minister in the Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government, told reporters here.

“The conspiracy has been hatched in Pakistan so that we do not get the permanent membership,” he charged. He also hit out at the “so-called secular forces”, saying they were not able to digest the “able leadership” provided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is making a strong pitch for country’s permanent membership of the UNSC. He was responding to questions asked in the context of Aamir Khan’s remark that he has been “alarmed” by a number of incidences and that his wife Kiran Rao even suggested that they should probably leave the country.

Hitting out at those who started the intolerance debate in the country, Mr Vij asked, “Where were these people when the 1984 anti-Sikh riots happened Why did these people not raise their voice then ”