Former Pak diplomat accuses Sharif of going soft on India

A former Pakistani diplomat has claimed that ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif had barred the foreign ministry from speaking against India and death-row convict Kulbhushan Yadav as part of the policy of going soft on New Delhi.

Tasneem Aslam, who served for a second term as Foreign Office spokesperson from 2013 to 2017, made the claim on Sunday in an interview with a YouTube channel run by an Islamabad-based journalist.

"Nawaz Sharif did not want to say anything against India and Jadhav through the Foreign Office, she claimed.

Jadhav, 49, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of "espionage and terrorism" in April 2017, following which India had moved the International Court of Justice (ICJ), seeking a stay on his death sentence and further remedies.

Pakistan claims its security forces arrested Jadhav from Balochistan province in March 2016 after he reportedly entered the country from Iran.

Aslam said the policy of going soft on India was not beneficial for the country.

"It did not benefit the country but I do not know whether it benefited his [Nawaz's] own interests or not, she said, alleging that the former premier had business interest with India.

Replying to a question on whether Sharif's family was pro-India, she said, "Yes. Of course."