'Despite US Pressure...': Imran Khan Praises India for Buying Oil from Russia

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan praised the Narendra Modi-led government's decision to buy cheap oil from Russia.

(File Photo: IANS)

After the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the Centre was reducing the excise duty on petrol and diesel, former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan praised the Narendra Modi-led government's decision to buy cheap oil from Russia despite pressure from the United States and being a member of Quad. Earlier, Khan had praised India's independent foreign policy.

"Despite being part of the Quad, India sustained pressure from the US and bought discounted Russian oil to provide relief to the masses," Khan said in a tweet.

Khan, who was recently ousted as the PM of Pakistan following a no-confidence vote, added that "this is what our government was working to achieve with the help of an independent foreign policy".

"For our government, Pakistan's interest was supreme, but unfortunately, the local Mir Jafars & Mir Sadiqs bowed to external pressure forcing a regime change and are now running around like a headless chicken with the economy in a tailspin," he added.

The Shehbaz Sharif-led country is also facing economic pressure as the dollar has touched a historic high against the Pakistani rupee. The country's depleting forex reserves and growing repayments and import financing requirements have put the country in dire need of foreign assistance.

Not the First Time Imran Has Praised India

This is not the first time Imran Khan has praised India. Earlier, he had praised India for protecting its independent foreign policy, 'centred on its people'.

However, Khan's comments were met with criticism from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz, who said that he should go to India if he liked it so much.

Khan had been voted out of power on April 10, thus becoming the first prime minister from the country to be ousted unceremoniously by the Parliament.

'Revenue Implication of Around Rs 1 lakh Crore Per Year for the Govt': FM Sitharaman

The Centre on Saturday announced a series of measures after retail inflation rose to an eight-year high earlier this month.

The Centre reduced the excise duty on petrol by Rs 8 per litre and diesel by Rs 6 per litre. "This will reduce the price of petrol by Rs 9.5 per litre and of diesel by Rs 7 per litre," FM Sitharaman said.

"It will have a revenue implication of around ₹ 1 lakh crore/year for the government. I wish to exhort all state governments, especially the states where the reduction wasn't done during the last round (November 2021), to also implement a similar cut and give relief to the common man," she added.