Indian minister accuses Pakistan of 'destabilising' India

Home Affairs Minister Rajnath Singh told a security conference in India’s northeast that Pakistan was still supporting militants fighting New Delhi’s rule in Muslim-majority Kashmir.

Singh pointed to a guerrilla attack earlier this week on an army patrol in Indian-administered Kashmir in which at least 10 people were killed.

“It is unfortunate Pakistan does not mend its ways,” Singh said, singling out Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence as one of the “state actors” seeking to roil India’s security.

“I do not hesitate in saying Pakistani state actors have a role in destabilising India,” Singh said, repeating a longstanding Indian demand that Pakistan rein in Islamic militants.

Singh’s remarks come on the heels of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)summit held earlier this week in Nepal that was overshadowed by India and Pakistan’s rivalry and ended with little progress towards regional integration.

Singh also voiced concern about Indian young people joining the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as Indian investigators interrogated a 23-year-old Mumbai-area man who returned home Friday from the Middle East.

The man is believed to have spent nearly six months fighting for the Islamic State, according to Indian police.

“Even though ISIS was born in Iraq and Syria, the Indian subcontinent cannot stay untouched by it — we need to be aware of that reality,” Singh said.

“A few Indian youth are getting swayed towards it (ISIS), which is a matter of concern,” the home minister said.

India was ready to deal with such security challenges, he added. -AFP