Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah rejected Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif's recent threat to strike Kolkata, advising Islamabad to focus on improving relations rather than escalating tensions.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, CM Abdullah said, “It hasn’t even been a year since Operation Sindoor was completed…Forget about Kolkata, they barely reached Jammu. They should forget about the dream of reaching Kolkata. It would be better for them to somehow try to improve relations rather than further worsen them, because bad relations don’t harm us as much as they do.”

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also responded strongly on Tuesday to Khawaja Asif’s remarks. He warned against provocative statements and referenced Pakistan’s 1947 partition. “Pakistan’s Defence Minister should not have given such a provocative statement. 55 years ago, they suffered the consequences when Pakistan was divided into two parts. If they try to cast an eye on Bengal, only God knows how many parts Pakistan will be divided into this time,” Singh told ANI.

Khajawa Asif had reportedly declared on Saturday that Islamabad would retaliate by striking Kolkata if India engaged in any future misadventure. The statement sparked criticism from within India, including from the Trinamool Congress (TMC). TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee on Monday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, accusing them of lacking the courage to condemn Pakistan’s Defence Minister’s reported threat.