New Delhi (NVI): India today rebuffed and ridiculed Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for commenting on the economic situation in this country and proposing to share his country’s “cash transfer programme”.
External Affairs Ministry drew Khan’s attention to the Indian government’s stimulus package of Rs 20 lakh crore and pointed out that it is as large as annual GDP of Pakistan.
“Pakistan is better known for making cash transfers to bank accounts outside the country rather than giving to its own people,” External Affairs Ministry spokesman Anurag Srivastava said at a briefing here while reacting to Khan’s tweets.
“Clearly, Imran Khan needs a new set of advisers and better information. We all know about their debt problem (almost 90% of 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 added.
Hours earlier, Khan referred to a report in a Pakistani daily newspaper and tweeted: “Acc to this report, 34% of households across India will not be able to survive for more than a week without add assistance. I am ready to offer help & share our successful cash transfer prog, lauded internationally for its reach & transparency, with India.
“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.”
The Pakistan Prime Minister’s claim can be considered ridiculous as his country has been facing extreme economic crisis and he has been pleading with international financial institutions and foreign countries to provide assistance in the wake of coronavirus crisis.
In one such appeal issued through a video on April 12, Khan pleaded with international institutions to give debt relief to Pakistan, saying his government could muster economic stimulus of only 8 billion dollars for the population of 220 million.
“With a population of 220 million people, so far the maximum stimulus we could afford is 8 dollars,” he said.
My appeal to the international community, the UNSG & international financial institutions to respond positively to the dilemma confronting developing countries in the face of the COVID19 pandemic. #Global_Initiative_Debt_Relief pic.twitter.com/EfydRhfZhc
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 12, 2020
