The arrows of statements in the corridors of Indian politics are often sharp and unpredictable, and this time the matter is related to international diplomacy. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad, Asaduddin Owaisi, has launched a major and sarcasm-filled political attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) over Uzbekistan's highest civilian award given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This statement of Owaisi has come at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been awarded the country's highest friendship honor 'Oli Darzali Dostlik' by Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Tashkent. After receiving this honour, a round of reactions has started in political circles, in which Owaisi's comments have become the most discussed topic. Owaisi's sharp jibe at Uzbekistan's highest honor and mention of Babar: During a dignified ceremony held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Mirziyoyev honored Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his country's highest civilian friendship award 'Oli Darzali Dostlik'. While on one hand the entire country and the ruling party were congratulating the Prime Minister on this international achievement, on the other hand Owaisi took the BJP and RSS to task on this occasion. Asaduddin Owaisi, in his sharp style, said sarcastically that the Bharatiya Janata Party should be congratulated for the fact that the country of the same Babar in whose name they do politics within the country, abuse us and taunt us continuously, has today given its highest civilian honor to the Prime Minister of the country. Owaisi said that now the leaders of Sangh Parivar and BJP should sit down and think seriously that on one hand they make sharp statements about Mughals and Babar in the pages of history, while on the other hand they accept awards while maintaining diplomatic and cordial relations with the country coming from the same region. Wherever Prime Minister Modi goes, he brings some big award or the other. Taking a dig at the highest honors given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by various countries around the world, the AIMIM chief further said that it has been the specialty of the Prime Minister that whichever country he visits in the world, he returns with some big state honor or award. He sarcastically said that the Prime Minister should be congratulated for this new international honour. Owaisi, while speaking to the public or the media, stressed that those indulging in polarizing politics in the name of Mughal rulers and especially Babar on political platforms should see that international diplomacy and bilateral relations work on completely different geopolitical realities. He expressed hope that after this incident, there will be some change in the way Babar's name is used in political discourse, because today the modern Indian government is maintaining strong friendship and strategic partnership with the countries of the same region to which the Mughals belonged in culture and geography. The word 'Friendly' and the diplomatic aspect of Prime Minister Modi's response Amidst this entire incident, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared his feelings in front of the country and the world by sharing a detailed post on the social media platform 'X' (formerly Twitter). PM Modi wrote that he is feeling extremely proud to receive Uzbekistan's highest civilian honor i.e. 'Oli Darzali Dostlik'. He dedicated this prestigious honor to the centuries-long lasting relations between India and Uzbekistan and the unbreakable friendship of the people of the two countries. In his address, the Prime Minister specifically mentioned the word 'Dostalik' and said that the people of India are completely familiar with this word and there would hardly be any family in our country where this word is not spoken several times a day. 'Dostalik' literally means friendship and this word beautifully captures the sentiments that lie at the heart of the relationship between the two countries. The Prime Minister clarified that this is not just his personal honour, but it is the collective honor of India's 1.4 billion citizens, which provides new heights to the mutual trust and strengthening cultural and economic relations between the two countries. International Diplomacy, Domestic Politics and Future Predictions Political analysts believe that this highest honor received by Prime Minister Modi from a Central Asian country like Uzbekistan is indicative of India's growing global credibility from a diplomatic point of view and strengthening strategic contacts with Central Asia. India considers Central Asia very important for its 'connectivity' and energy security, and there are frequent agreements with Uzbekistan in defence, trade, counter-terrorism cooperation and the pharmaceutical sector. However, in the domestic political circles, such international events are also used by the opposition parties in their own way to show the other side of the picture. This statement of Asaduddin Owaisi is a part of this domestic political scenario, where he is seen asking questions to the ruling party by keeping the ideological issues and the terminology used in election speeches in the mirror of international diplomacy. However, India's diplomatic relations with Uzbekistan are continuously strengthening beyond these political debates and this spirit of 'friendliness' will work to take the bilateral relations between the two countries to a new level in the times to come.
