A senior Pakistani military official has issued a provocative threat to India in response to New Delhi’s decision to suspend parts of the Indus Waters Treaty, drawing parallels with rhetoric used by Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) terrorist Hafiz Saeed.
Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the spokesperson for Pakistan’s armed forces, made the remarks during a speech at a university event.
Reacting to India’s recent move to keep the treaty on hold until Pakistan ceases support for cross-border terrorism, Chaudhry declared, “If you block our water, we will choke your breath.”
The statement comes in the wake of India’s decision to partially suspend the 1960 water-sharing agreement following a terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on 22 April that left 26 people dead.
India has linked the suspension to Pakistan’s continued support for terror outfits operating from its territory.
Chaudhry’s remarks mirror those of Lashkar-e-Toiba founder Hafiz Saeed – the architect of the 2008 Mumbai attacks – who used the same phrase in a widely circulated video on the social media platform X.
Saeed is notorious for his incendiary speeches targeting both India and the United States.
The Indus Waters Treaty, brokered by the World Bank, outlines the distribution of river waters between the two countries.
India’s move on 23 April signals a firmer stance on Pakistan’s alleged backing of terrorist groups.
New Delhi has maintained its position that ‘blood and water cannot flow together; talk and terror cannot go together’ and that talks with Pakistan are impossible while terrorism continues.
India has suspended the treaty as part of several recent measures.
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On 7 May, the country carried out ‘Operation Sindoor’, a precise counter-terror strike targeting nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has since reiterated that any talks with Islamabad will focus exclusively on the return of illegally occupied Indian territory in Jammu and Kashmir.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated, “Terror and talks can’t coexist.”
Jaiswal also reaffirmed India’s position that meaningful dialogue can only happen after Pakistan takes ‘credible and irreversible’ action to stop supporting terrorism.
“Water and blood cannot flow together,” he echoed, referencing a comment by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In a related move, two Pakistani High Commission staff members in New Delhi were expelled for actions incompatible with their diplomatic roles.
“One has already left India, and the other was given 24 hours to do so,” Jaiswal confirmed.
Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Modi addressed a rally in Rajasthan’s Bikaner, issuing a stern message to Islamabad.
PM Modi warned that Pakistan would have to ‘struggle for every penny’ if it continued on its current path, asserting that it could not expect India’s cooperation under the existing treaty conditions.
“Playing with the blood of Indians will now cost Pakistan heavily,” the Prime Minister concluded.
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