Out-of-work Malaysian ex-PM Mahathir Mohamad brazens out anti-India tosh; silent on terror

Malaysia's former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Saturday said while that his "contentious" remarks on the Kashmir issue have led to strained relations with India, he would not apologise for them. Recalling his speech at the UN General Assembly last year, Mahathir said that his remarks on Kashmir were only “mild and restrained.” As was the case then, he refused to address Pakistan-backed terrorism against India.

In a series of tweets, the former PM, who resigned this year from the post, said that he was unapologetic for speaking out against "injustice", but was "sorry" that it affected Malaysia's palm oil export to India. 

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Mahathir Mohamad, who is gearing up to form a new party in Malaysia went on to say that since he is no longer the Prime Minister, he would take the liberty to speak without restrain and address the Kashmir issue without any threats.

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Mahathir angers India

In September 2019, a month after the Abrogation of Article 370, Mahathir had raised the Kashmir issue while speaking at the UN General Assembly, drawing a strong reaction from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which said that India "completely rejects the references made in respect of Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral and inalienable part of India".

"We once again call upon the Malaysian leadership to develop a better understanding of the facts, including that Pakistan which remains an epicentre of global terrorism, continues to recruit, train, arm and finance cross-border terrorism against India," the MEA had then said.

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