Sharad Pawar was speaking at an Eid-Milan program in Pune. (File)
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar on Thursday said the common people of Pakistan were not India's enemy, rather those who want power with the help of the army are the ones that favour tensions between the two countries.
Without naming Imran Khan, he also said that a young man took the reins of Pakistan and tried to give a direction to that country but was ousted from power.
The former Union Minister was speaking at an Eid-Milan program in the Kondhwa area in Pune.
"A different kind of situation is prevailing in the world today. A powerful country like Russia is attacking a small country like Ukraine, youngsters in Sri Lanka are on the road, fighting, and the leaders of those country have gone underground," Mr Pawar said, referring to the war in Ukraine and the unrest in Sri Lanka.
"In neighbouring Pakistan, where you and I have brothers... a young man took the reins of the prime minister's post, an attempt was made to show a direction to the country, but the Prime Minister was ousted from power and a different picture is seen there now," the NCP chief said, apparently referring to Imran Khan.
Mr Khan, 69, had to step down as prime minister recently following a no-trust vote in Pakistan's National Assembly.
He visited Pakistan many times as a Union Minister and also as President of the International Cricket Council, Mr Pawar said.
"Be it Lahore, Karachi, wherever we went, warm welcome was accorded. We had gone to Karachi with our cricket team for a match. A day after the match, players expressed their desire to see the places around them... We went to a restaurant and after having breakfast, when we tried to pay the bill, the restaurant owner refused to take money, and said we were their guests," he said.
The common people of Pakistan are not India's enemy, Mr Pawar further said.
"Those who want to do politics and seize power with the help of the (Pakistani) army, they favour conflict," he added.
Mr Pawar added that Indians could get rid of British rule because leaders of the freedom struggle were united, and if someone was trying to create hatred among communities today, everyone will have to come together and teach such people a lesson.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)