India’s fake media busy spinning Pakistan's internal defence budgeting choice: DG ISPR

Director General Inter Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Major General Asif Ghafoor said on Wednesday that India’s fake media was busy spinning Pakistan’s internal defence budgeting choice.

“Don’t forget we were the same forces with same budget on 27 Feb 19. We have the capability and capacity to respond. Remember, it’s not budgeting, its resolve of force and the nation firmly standing behind its forces,” DG ISPR tweeted.

Minister for Science and Technology, Fawad Chaudhry said Indian media was a classic case what media should never be.

"They toe their agencies and establishment line like a pet," the minister said, adding, "In #Pulwama, Indian media earned worldwide notoriety for war mongering and seems they are first to get effected by Hindutva doctrine."

Earlier, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa said there would be no impact to the military’s response potential due to the voluntary cut in the defence budget.

The COAS who spent EID with troops at the Line of Control (LoC) said the voluntary decision to forego even the routine increase in the annual defence budget, COAS said, “This initiative is not a favour to the nation as we are one through thick and thin.”

“Irrespective of the voluntary cut in defence budget coming financial year (FY), there shall be no impact on our response potential to all types of threat and quality of life of the soldiers. The no pay raise decision is also only for the officers and not for the soldiers. We shall manage the shortfall during FY by tightening our belt in areas where it doesn’t effect the two aforesaid aspects,” COAS concluded.

Prime Minister Imran Khan said Tuesday he was very appreciative of the Pakistan military's "unprecedented voluntary initiative of stringent cuts in their defence expenditures" especially in light of the country's financial situation.

The prime minister said he was grateful for the move that came "despite multiple security challenges" that Pakistan faces.

Prime Minister Khan further added that the funds saved will now be used for the development of the newly-merged tribal areas as well as in Balochistan.

"My govt will spend this money saved on development of merged tribal areas and Balochistan," he wrote on Twitter.