'Diplomatic victory for India': Govt on UN blacklisting of Masood Azhar

New Delhi, May 02: Union Minister Arun Jaitley today said that the government and the Prime Minister should be applauded for Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar being blacklisted by the United Nations.

In a press conference, BJP leaders Nirmala Sitharaman and Arun Jaitley sought to firmly place the credit of the United Nations listing Jaish chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist on the Narendra Modi government.

"Government and PM Narendra Modi should be applauded. When the country wins, every Indian wins. There should have been a moment of pride for every citizen but unfortunately, some friends in the Opposition believe that if they become a part of this diplomatic win, they might have to pay a political price for it," Jaitley said.

Jaitley said that the current dispensation succeeded in an attempt the country has been making for the last 10 years, "but then they (opposition) says 'this is trivial, what is big in it'."

"There was a tradition in the country to speak in one voice on issues such as external affairs and national security but there has been a departure from it in the last few years. Emphasising that the labelling of Azhar as a global terrorist is a "great diplomatic achievement for India", the finance minister said, "If India wins, Indians win, but there are friends in opposition who are not celebrating it as they may have to pay a political price for it."

Responding to Congress' allegations against the ECI, Jaitley says, "the party blackmails institutions and tarnishes them. The MCC is administered by EC and Congress' complaint is friovolous."

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who was accompanying Jaitley at the press conference, attributed the success of sanctioning of JeM chief to the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Terrorism shall not be tolerated and this declaration from the UN is noteworthy. It is the result of persistent measures taken by the external affairs ministry, under leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," she said.

The UN Sanctions Committee on Wednesday designated the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Azhar a global terrorist after China lifted its hold on a proposal to ban him.