Javed Akhtar defends Priyanka Chopra's views on Balakot airstrike: The fact remains she is an Indian
Priyanka Chopra has been accused of supporting a nuclear war between India and Pakistan when she came out in support of the Indian Air Force after the Balakot airstrike.
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India Today Web DeskNew DelhiAugust 22, 2019UPDATED: August 22, 2019 16:20 IST
Javed Akhtar said that Priyanka Chopra's views were that of an Indian citizen and if Pakistan had a problem, they could do whatever they wanted.
Priyanka Chopra has been accused of supporting a "nuclear war" between India and Pakistan by the neighbouring country's human rights minister Shireen Mazari. In a letter addressed to the UNICEF chief Henrietta Fore, the minister demanded the removal of the actress as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.
Javed Akhtar defended Priyanka's support of the Indian Air Force after the airstrike on a major Jaish-e-Mohammad terror camp in Pakistan earlier this year, and said that her views were that of an Indian citizen.
"I know Priyanka Chopra personally. She is a cultured, decent and educated person and the fact remains she is an Indian. If there is some kind of a controversy and difference in point of view between an average Indian citizen (like Priyanka Chopra) and the Pakistani establishment, obviously her point of view will be an Indian point of view," the eminent lyricist told reporters at an event in Kolkata, reports PTI.
"If her comments have upset the Pakistani establishment, they can do whatever they wish," he added.
On February 26, hours after fighter jets of the Indian Air Force destroyed a major Jaish-e-Mohammad terror camp in Balakot, Priyanka lauded the Indian Air Force and tweeted, "Jai Hind." The airstrike was in retaliation to a deadly attack on a security convoy in Pulwama earlier that month, in which 40 soldiers were martyred.
PRIYANKAโ@priyankachopraJai Hind #IndianArmedForces
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At the time, a petition originating in Pakistan sought the removal of Priyanka as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. "War between two nuclear powers can only lead to destruction and death. As goodwill ambassador of UNICEF, Priyanka Chopra was supposed to stay neutral and peaceful but her tweet in favour of the Indian armed forces after they invaded Pakistan's airspace shows otherwise. She doesn't deserve this title anymore," it read.
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The controversy resurfaced earlier this month, when at an event in Los Angeles, Priyanka was called a "hypocrite" by a woman of Pakistani origin for "encouraging nuclear war against Pakistan".
In the video that went viral on the internet, Ayesha Malik tells Priyanka, "It was kind of hard hearing you talk about humanity, because as your neighbour, a Pakistani, I know you are a bit of a hypocrite, because you tweeted on February 26, 'Jai Hind. #IndianArmedForces' You are a UNICEF ambassador for peace and you are encouraging nuclear war against Pakistan."
Priyanka responded by saying that though she was not in favour of war, she was patriotic. "Whenever you're done venting... Done? Okay, cool. War is not something I'm really fond of but I am patriotic, so I'm sorry if I hurt sentiments of people who do love me and have loved me. But I think that all of us have a, sort of, middle ground that we all have to walk. Just like you probably do as well. The way that you came at me right now... girl, don't yell. We're all here for love," she said.
Soon after the viral video, Pakistan human rights minister Shireen Mazari wrote to the UNICEF Executive Director, demanding that Priyanka's title as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador be stripped.
"Her jingoism and support for violations by the Modi government of international conventions and UN Security Council resolutions on Kashmir, as well as support for war, including a nuclear war, undermines the credibility of the UN position to which she been elevated," the letter read.
"Unless she is removed immediately, the very idea of a UN goodwill ambassador for peace becomes a mockery globally," it added.
Shireen Mazariโ@ShireenMazari1Sent letter to UNICEF chief regarding UN Goodwill Ambassador for Peace Ms Chopra
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