Sharad Pawar praises Pakistan, says people are happy there

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday praised Pakistan saying that he received a very warm welcome on his visit to the neighbouring country and added that people are happy in the Islamic nation as against the common belief in India.

He said BJP-led central government was spreading fake propaganda against Pakistan for political gains.

"People here say Pakistanis are facing injustice and are unhappy but it is not true. Such statements are being made only for political gains without understanding the actual situation in Pakistan," he said here.

The former Union Minister said that he had visited Pakistan on several occasions where he was accorded hospitality as "Pakistanis believe that even if they can't go to India to meet their relatives, they treat an Indian as their relatives".

Tensions prevail between India and Pakistan ever since the Pulwama terror attack in February in which 40 CRPF jawans were killed. India had hit back at Pakistan with an airstrike in Balakot.

It heightened following the revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, with Pakistan unsuccessfully approaching the global community to seek their support on the matter. Incidents of ceasefire violations, attempted infiltration through the borders of Jammu and Kashmir have only added to the tensions.

Frustrated with the snub from the international community over the nullification of Article 370, which India described as "internal matter", Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has even threatened India with nuclear war over the situation in Kashmir.