Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday assailed what he described as the “moral bankruptcy” of Indian and Israeli political leadership, accusing the incumbent parties of harbouring ambitions to “illegally occupy land” in the West Bank and Kashmir in defiance of international laws and “their own constitutions” for votes as both countries head to polls this week.
In a tweet, Khan said:
When ldrs in Israel & India show a moral bankruptcy in their readiness to annex occupied West Bank & IOK in defiance of int law, UNSC resolutions & their own Constitution for votes, don’t their ppl feel a sense of outrage & wonder how far they will go simply to win an election?
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 9, 2019
Israelis began voting in elections on Tuesday that could hand conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a record fifth term or see him dethroned by an ex-general who has pledged clean government and social cohesion. Netanyahu pledged last week to annex settlements in the occupied West Bank if he wins the upcoming general election.India is also heading to the polls on Thursday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seeks a second term in the almost six-week mega-election. About 900 million people are eligible to vote in a staggered process that allows the government to deploy tens of thousands of troops to prevent outbreaks of violence and the capture of voting stations by party activists.
BJP, in their manifesto, which they released recently, vowed to abrogate Article 370 and Article 35-A of the Indian constitution, granting special status to Jammu and Kashmir.