Congress veteran and former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot on Sunday demanded an unconditional apology from Rajasthan BJP president Madan Rathore over his controversial remark that India would support Pakistan if a war broke out between Pakistan and the United States, news agency Press Trust of India reported.
At an event in Jaipur last week, Rathore said, "If a war breaks out between America and Pakistan today, we will stand with Pakistan because it is our neighbour. But when it comes to our differences, we stand with India."
The former Rajasthan chief minister said Rathore's repeated clarifications were making matters worse. He asked the BJP leader to apologise sincerely and express regret without any conditions.
"But instead of apologising, he is blaming the media and asking why journalists are cornering him. The media is not putting words into his mouth. It is only showing what he actually said," Gehlot said, according to PTI.
After facing criticism, Rathore claimed that he had been referring to a cricket match between the US and Pakistan, and not a war. He also said his remarks had been distorted and taken out of context.
Gehlot said Rathore's intention or the context of his remarks might have been different, but any reference to Pakistan reminded people of the 2019 Pulwama terror attack and other incidents in Jammu and Kashmir.
"People cannot forget the killings in terrorist attacks linked to Pakistan. There is widespread anger over his remarks," Gehlot said.
He also said Congress workers held demonstrations across Rajasthan on Saturday following a call by the Pradesh Congress Committee. Gehlot said the BJP would not be able to contain the public anger until Rathore apologised and explained his remarks to the people.
Gehlot maintained that Rathore should offer an unconditional apology, saying his subsequent explanations and criticism of the media had not addressed the controversy over the remarks.
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