Karnataka Congress deletes social media post showing J&K as part of Pakistan; BJP hits out

Bengaluru: A social media post by the Congress in Karnataka allegedly containing a map showing Jammu and Kashmir as part of Pakistan elicited a sharp reaction from the opposition BJP.

The post on 'X', which has now been deleted by the ruling party in the state, was intended to criticise Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government for "failing" to stop the International Monetary Fund loan to Pakistan.

The IMF on May 9 approved the immediate disbursement of about $1 billion to Pakistan under the ongoing Extended Fund Facility.

India's opposition to the IMF earlier came during the recent military conflict with Pakistan post the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 people dead.

When questioned by reporters about the Congress post, the party’s state President and Deputy Chief Minister, D K Shivakumar here, said, "It is false. There was a small mistake; we have removed everything... someone has played mischief." Asked about repeated goof-ups on the party's social media handle, Shivakumar said, "The people responsible for the posts have been removed," without revealing more.

Reacting to the post, Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, R Ashoka, said that by tweeting a map showing Kashmir as belonging to Pakistan, Karnataka Congress had once again demonstrated its affection for "sinful" Pakistan.

"Overall, there is no doubt that the IT cell of the Karnataka Congress party is a sleeper cell for Pakistani terrorists," he said in a post on 'X'.

Ashoka also pointed to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s earlier "no need for war" comments, made well before Operation Sindhoor, and said, "The CM, who had advocated in favour of Pakistan, changed his stance after public outrage." He further noted that a Congress social media post calling for peace, published just hours after Operation Sindhoor, was also deleted amid public anger.