New Delhi/Islamabad, June 11: The government on Thursday derided Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan after he offered financial aid to India, claiming that Indians would not be able to survive for more than a week without assistance.
Khan on Twitter cited a Pakistani news report which said that "nearly 34 per cent households across India would not be able to survive for more than a week without assistance." "I am ready to offer help & share our successful cash transfer prog, lauded internationally for its reach & transparency, with India," Khan tweeted. Imran Khan Turns His Focus Towards India, Offers to Share Pakistan’s Cash Transfer Programme With India Amid Rising Cases in His Own Country.
Here's what Imran Khan said:
Our govt successfully transferred Rs. 120 billion in 9 weeks to over 10 million families in a transparent manner to deal with the COVID19 fallout on the poor.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 11, 2020
Khan was not only mocked widely by Indians and Pakistanis on social media, but the official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, Anurag Srivastava, too took a jibe at Pakistan. "Pakistan is better known for making cash transfers to bank accounts outside the country rather than giving to its own people. Clearly, Imran Khan needs a new set of advisers and better information," he said.
Here's what Anurag Srivastava said:
Pakistan would do well to recall that they have a debt problem which covers 90% of their GDP. As far as India goes, our stimulus package is as large as the GDP of Pakistan: Anurag Srivastava, MEA on Pakistan PM Imran Khan's offer to help India in cash transfer programme pic.twitter.com/caTcANoC8d
— ANI (@ANI) June 11, 2020
Srivastava said that everyone knows about Pakistan's debt problem, which is almost 90 per cent of its GDP, and how much they have pressed for debt restructuring. "It would also be better for them to remember that India has a stimulus package, which is as large as Pakistan's annual GDP," Srivastava said pithily. Khan has claimed that his government in Pakistan has transferred about $1 billion to at least 10 million families within nine weeks through what he calls a successful and transparent process.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 11, 2020 07:21 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).