Republic Summit | Hardeep Singh Puri expresses concern on the prospect of Pak's collapse

The two-day Republic summit with the theme 'Time Of Transformation' is being held in New Delhi and will conclude on April 26. The mega event will witness the most respected and influential voices from an intersection of governance, politics, spirituality, economy, policy, business, global affairs, and beyond.

On the 2nd day of the summit, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, speaking about the chaos in Pakistan, expressed concern. "If Pakistan collapses, you have a fear of people coming here directly," he said. He also highlighted the fact that Pakistan has used terror as an instrument of policy. The minister also spoke about India's rise. "India is steadily rising as an independent country whose voice is being heard," he said. 

#RepublicSummit | Pakistan has used terror as an instrument of policy. If Pakistan collapses, you have a fear of people coming here directly: Union Minister for Petroleum, Housing & Urban Affairs @HardeepSPuri#TimeOfTransformation pic.twitter.com/y6rs6ZIvG1

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Why does the prospect of Pakistan's collapse concern India?

Mr. Puri expressed a concern some former senior intelligence officers and analysts have expressed as well. If Pakistan collapses, India will be staring at the prospect of large-scale migration from Pakistan, which would destabilise India's social cohesion and stability. 

Puri speaks about transformation

Further, talking about transformation, the minister said, "According to the theme 'Time of Transformation', I look at the transformation in terms of very basic, what did you inherit and what will you bequeath, that is the definition of 'transformation' and I can tell you what we saw in 1947, 2014, and what we see in 2023 and that is going to be what we address in the Indian electorate in 2024. I think that this will be discussed and I don't think any political opposition in terms of groupings or parties which has even nodding acquaintance with the level of progress and the intensity of progress that the country is registering today."