Sidhu will win if he contests election in Pakistan: Imran Khan

Lahore, Nov 28: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan made a strong pitch for betterment of India-Pakistan ties and said strong leadership is needed on both sides of the border for it. He said if India takes one step to improve ties, then Pakistan will take two steps.

Speaking at the Kartarpur corridor groundbreaking ceremony, Khan heaped praise on Navjot Singh Sidhu and said the Punjab Minister is a messenger of peace from India. Khan said the Sidhu would win election if he contests in Pakistan.

"India and Pakistan can keep blaming each other, but to move forward we need to get rid of the shackles of the past," he said.

If France and Germany can forget historic enimosity and become friends, then cannot India and Pakistan, he said.

"I heard there was a lot of criticism of Sidhu when he went back after my oath-taking ceremony. I don't know why was he criticised. He was just talking about peace & brotherhood. He can come and contest election here in Pakistan's Punjab, he will win," Khan said.

Khan gave examples from his cricket playing days and said a player used to have a fear of losing while entering the stadium. He said Kashmir issue can be solved if leadership on both sides of the border are strong.

"The only issue between us is Kashmir, all it needs is just two capable leaderships to resolve this issue. Just imagine the potential we have if our relationships get strong," he said.

A Pakistan minister said that if the country gets more hugs from Sidhu, many problems will be solved.

"I would like to mention Navjot Sidhu's hug to Pakistan army chief. If we get more hugs from Sidhu, many of our problems will be solved," he said.

Earlier, Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal, who along with Union Minister Hardeep Puri went to Pakistan for the ceremony, got emotional while talking about Kartarpur Corridor. Terming the Kartarpur corridor as peace corridor, Badal hoped that it ends all the hatred. Reiterating PM Modi's statement while referring to the Berlin Wall, an emotional Badal said "If the Berlin wall can fall, even the walls between India and Pakistan will fall with this corridor."