“Thank god they didn't say there was bomb in Jadhav's wife's shoes”

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Thursday tore into Pakistan for confiscating the shoes of Kulbhushan Jadhav's wife when she visited Islamabad on Monday to meet him. Swaraj asked if something really suspicious was there in the footwear then why nothing was detected by the security check of Emirates Airline, which she took from Dubai to Islamabad.

Pakistan claims to have detected a "metallic substance" in the shoes worn by Kulbhushan Jadhav's wife and sent the footwear for forensic examination. Jadhav's wife's shoes were kept for inspection, while all other belongings, including jewellery, were returned. She was given an alternative pair of shoes to wear after her shoes were removed.

"Thank God they didn't say that there was a bomb in her shoes! If for security reasons she was made to take off shoes, they should have returned them when she was leaving but no, they had to commit some sort of cruelty," Swaraj said in Rajya Sabha.

"Islamabad touted this meeting was based on humanity and good faith, but the fact of the matter is that there was neither humanity nor good faith during the meeting," the EAM added.

The minister told the House that Kulbhushan Jadhav's mother was not allowed to speak in Marathi, their mother tongue and that Pakistani officials switched-off the intercom when she spoke in Marathi.

Kulbhushan Jadhav has been in the Pakistani jail since April 2016 over allegations of being an Indian spy. On what Pakistan claimed was a humanitarian gesture, Jadhav's mother and wife were issued visas and allowed to meet him on Monday. The meeting did not turn out to be the way Jadhav's family may have expected. There was a glass partition between Jadhav and his family, and his wife and the mother were asked to remove mangalsutra, bangles and bindi, besides been asked to change the attire, citing it as a security measure.

OneIndia News