‘Even Indira Gandhi couldn’t do it’: Jaishankar says India can’t change fanatical mindset of Pakistan

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said India cannot change the fanatical mindset of Pakistan. He quipped even former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi could not do it. 

Jaishankar was speaking in the Lok Sabha on Friday, where he highlighted the incidents involving attacks on minorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh. He said New Delhi is tracking the treatment of minorities in Pakistan very closely and making its position well known. 

Responding to whether India plans tough action on the lines of Indira Gandhi’s stance against Pakistan, Jaishankar said as a government and a country, India “cannot change the fanatical and bigoted mindset of a neighbour”. "Even Indira Gandhi could not do it," he observed.

The minister pointed to 10 incidents involving attacks on Hindus in Pakistan in February while replying to a supplementary query during the Question Hour. The minister said that seven of these incidents related to abduction and forced conversion, while two other cases related to abduction. In one case, there was police action against students celebrating Holi, he said. 

He also spoke of three other cases concerning atrocities against members of the Sikh community. In one instance, a Sikh family was attacked. Another case involved threats against a Sikh family for reopening an old Gurdwara. The third case concerned the abduction and conversion of a girl from the Sikh community, according to the minister. Jaishankar also mentioned two cases involving members of the Ahmediya community. There was also a case where a Christian individual with an unstable mind was charged with blasphemy, he said.

India addresses such cases at the international level as well, he said.

"Like in Pakistan, we track the welfare and well-being of minorities in Bangladesh as well ... In 2024, we had 2,400 incidents relating to attacks on minorities and in 2025, 72 incidents ... I have taken it up with my counterpart there. The foreign secretary also took it up when he visited Bangladesh. This continues to be a matter of concern for our government," Jaishankar said.