Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], May 31 (ANI): Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Friday took a jibe at the remarks made by Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy regarding India taking back Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) if Congress leader and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi was the Prime Minister, stating that it was 'hilarious'.

He asserted that PoK exists today due to decisions made by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who held him responsible for both the partition of the nation and the situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

'It is hilarious if any Congress leader says that if Rahul Gandhi were the PM of India, the PoK would have been India's part. But the fact is that had Rahul Gandhi's great maternal grandfather, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, not been the PM of India, the PoJK would not have been (in existence) today. It is the result of his actions that first, the nation was divided, then Jammu and Kashmir was divided,' Singh told ANI.

'We must not forget that when the India-Pakistan war was going on, and our forces were in a situation to win the PoK back, it was the then PM Jawaharlal Nehru who declared a unilateral ceasefire on the Akashvani without consulting with anyone,' he added.

Singh's remarks came in response to statements made by Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, who said that if Rahul Gandhi had been the Prime Minister, India would have taken back PoK.

He was speaking at an event that raised questions on why Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called a ceasefire to the recent military operations against Pakistan without consulting political parties, even though an all-party meeting was held before military strikes began.

'Why was no all-party meeting called to seek the opinions of all the parties before declaring a ceasefire?' asked Reddy on Thursday while participating in Congress 'Jai Hind Yatra' in Nizampet, Hyderabad.

Addressing the event, Reddy called PM Modi an 'expired rupee'. He said, 'Modi is expired rupee, Modi is like a 1000 rupees' invalid note. Today, this country needs Rahul Gandhi's leadership. If a leader like Rahul Gandhi would have been Prime Minister of this country, then he would have taken (former PM) Indira Gandhi as inspiration and would have walked in Kaali's (Maata) way and would have made Pakistan into two parts and would have taken PoK back.'

Reddy drew comparisons with the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's leadership and her decisive action against China and Pakistan, including the 1971 war, which led to the creation of Bangladesh. (ANI)