In its quest to defame India, Pakistan revealed its own crime.
The stamps, 20 in all, were issued by Pakistan Post on 24 July, a day before the general election in Pakistan. While one of the stamps hailed Wani as a “freedom fighter”, others carried provocative messages and images through which Islamabad attempted to stir up emotions against India.
But their attempt backfired when a group of Kashmiri Pandits revealed that the stamp headlined “missing persons” shows a demonstration organised by a Kashmiri Pandit group called Roots in Kashmir against Pak-sponsored terrorism.
The picture used by Pakistan in the stamp was taken at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi in January 2014.
The group unmasked Pakistan’s maliciousness in a Twitter post on 30 September. In the post, the group identified every protestor who were actually victims of Pak terror.
“Pakistan adds insult to injury by using picture of RIK PROTESTORS AGAINST PAK TERROR to propogate fake narrative of human rights violation by India. The real violation is done by Pakistan itself by ensuring the ethnic cleansing of the aborigines of Kashmir; the Kashmiri Pandits,” the tweet read.
Roots In Kashmir@RootsInKashmirPakistan adds insult to injury by using picture of RIK PROTESTORS AGAINST PAK TERROR to propogate fake narrative of human rights violation by India. The real violation is done by Pakistan itself by ensuring the ethnic cleansing of the aborigines of Kashmir; the Kashmiri Pandits
Another stamp titled “homeless children” apparently shows the Sikh victims of the Chittisinghpura massacre that took place in Jammu-Kashmir on 20 March 2000. A group of Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists killed 35 Sikhs triggering protests in the state against Pak-sponsored terrorism.
According to reports, one of the children in the image used for the stamp shows a Sikh boy with his turban obscured by the stamp’s denomination.
The issuance of the stamps, news of which came to light only after a Pakistani official confirmed it in September, was one of the major reasons behind India’s decision to cancel a planned meeting between External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Pakistani counterpart on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
The news of the stamps came at a time when Pakistani soldiers slit the throat of a BSF jawan near the International Border.
Meanwhile, social media users slammed Pakistan for its attempt at slandering India’s image and hiding its own crimes.
Naila Inayat✔@nailainayat
Pakistan can’t even do propaganda properly. Now the Kashmir postage stamps that foreign minister also mentioned at the #UNGA carries incorrect photos. One is from a protest by Kashmiri Pandits, while the other photo is of Chittisinghpura massacre of Sikhs.
This is the second time Pakistan has been caught using wrong images to falsely accuse India. In 2017, Pakistani Ambassador to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi had passed off the picture of an injured Palestinian girl as a victim of Indian pellet guns in Kashmir in the UNGA. Islamabad was severely censured for the lie.
Swaraj, who delivered an address at the UNGA on 29 September, tore into Pakistan’s lies slamming Islamabad for backing terrorism in the region and called Pak PM Imran Khan statement accusing India of sabotaging chances of dialogue a “complete lie”.
