Reacting to the Pakistani prime minister's sarcastic jibe aimed at New Delhi, the Foreign Ministry of the country stated that India has a stimulus package that is as large as Pakistan's annual gross domestic product (GDP).
In a press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Anurag Srivastava stated that Pakistan is undergoing debt issues “which covers 90 percent of its GDP” and has a frequent need for debt restructuring.
“We all known about their debt problem (almost 90% of GDP) and how much they have pressed for debt restructuring. It would also be better for them to remember that India has a stimulus package, which is as large as Pakistan's annual GDP”, stated the MEA on Thursday, reacting to the comment made by Imran Khan.
In addition, Srivastava jibed at Khan by saying that the country is “better known for making cash transfers to bank accounts outside the country rather than giving to its own people”.
The stinging reaction from India came in response to Khan’s offer to share his country’s "successful and transparent" cash transfer programme with New Delhi to help the country emerge from the crisis resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.
“Acc to this report, 34% of households across India will not be able to survive for more than a week without add assistance. I am ready to offer help & share our successful cash transfer prog, lauded internationally for its reach & transparency, with India”, Khan had said in a tweet on Thursday.
Khan became a target of trolls from neighbouring India’s social media users, who did not take it very well and lampooned him with memes.
India's government announced a $266 billion economic package in May to boost the economy, which is facing an economic slowdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.