Congress uses Imran Khan's statement to allege Modi has 'allied' with Pak

The Congress on Wednesday said Pakistan has now "officially allied" with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a vote for him would mean a vote for the neighbouring country.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, however, said Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's design and wish will never come true as people of the country will defeat Modi in this Lok Sabha election as they never allow forces that perpetuate and propagate hatred and division in the country.

The Congress leader was reacting to Khan's statement that he believes there may be a better chance of peace talks with India and settle the Kashmir issue if Prime Minister Modi's party BJP wins the general elections.

"Pakistan has now officially allied with Shri Modi ji. Pakistan Prime Minister appears to say that a 'Vote-for-Modi is a vote for Imran Khan'. It seems that Pakistan has now officially allied with Modi. Imran Khan seems to now wish for his friend Modi Ji's success," he told reporters.

Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel also took a jibe at Prime Minister Modi, saying "the true colours are out" and termed the statement from Khan as "mahamilavat", a phrase used by Modi to describe the opposition's 'mahagathbandhan' - a grand alliance of all opposition parties to defeat him.

"Their true colours are out. This is called Mahamilavat," Patel said on Twitter, while tagging a picture of Modi.

Surjewala said the entire country has seen Modi's love for Nawaz Sharif and ISI when he went "uninvited" to Pakistan and then "invited" ISI to India.

"It seems that the love affair with Imran Khan now continues. We want to say Imran Khan and Pakistan will never succeed nor will the firecrackers in Modi ji's language burst in Pakistan, for Modi ji is going to lose the 2019 election," he said.

Surjewala said Pakistan Prime Minister and the ISI want that a prime minister should continue in India where the internal strife continues to blow, where the atmosphere of hatred and division gets perpetuated by the actions of the powers that are and where peace is a casualty in the country, where directly or indirectly forces inimical to India continue to get space.

He said Pakistan wants to isolate India while its relationship with China be strengthened.

"Let me say as a citizen of India that Pakistan Prime Minister's diabolical design and wish will never come true. We will defeat every force that perpetuate and propagate hatred division in this country and Imran Khan's friend Modi Ji is and his party will be decimated by people of India," he said.

"Pak has officially allied with Modi! A vote for Modi is a vote for Pakistan!" Surjewala also tweeted.

India will go to elections in seven phases beginning from Thursday.

"Perhaps if the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party)....wins, some kind of settlement in Kashmir could be reached," Khan told a small group of foreign journalists in an interview.

He said other parties would be afraid of right-wing backlash in case of settlement on the Kashmir issue.

Khan said Kashmir was the central issue between the two countries.

India maintains that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of the country and Pakistan is in illegal occupation of a part of the state's territory.