New Delhi: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, leading an all-party parliamentary delegation to the United States, reiterated India’s firm stand that no dialogue with Pakistan is possible while terror threats persist. “We will not dialogue with people who are pointing a gun at our heads,” Tharoor said during an interaction at the National Press Club on Wednesday (local time), stressing that India’s stance on cross-border terrorism has been made clear to all stakeholders, including the US.
Responding to a question on US involvement in encouraging India-Pakistan dialogue, Tharoor said, “The US understands our clear position—there will be no talks with a gun pointed at our head.”
He elaborated with a sharp analogy, saying, “If your neighbour unleashes his Rottweilers on your children and then asks you to talk, you wouldn’t agree until he leashes or puts down the Rottweilers.”
Tharoor maintained that India is open to dialogue in principle, but not under coercion. “We’re very happy to talk in any language they speak, but not while terror elements operate freely from their soil,” he said.
