Are India Block leaders getting trapped in Pakistan's Mango Diplomacy?

It is being claimed that baskets of mangoes have been sent to the leaders of the India alliance by the Pakistan High Commission. These leaders include Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Shashi Tharoor and many MPs of the Samajwadi Party.

The Pakistan government is doing mango diplomacy with Indian MPs. Several reports have revealed that the Pakistan High Commission has sent mangoes to some Indian MPs as a sign of goodwill and friendship. People often send baskets of mangoes to each other during the mango season. Mango diplomacy is not a new thing. During Eid in 2015, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif had sent mangoes to Indian PM Narendra Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee and many other senior leaders.

There is a ruckus over the news of the arrival of these mangoes because it is claimed that these mangoes have been sent only to opposition MPs. Many people on social media are seeing this as a big conspiracy. It is being claimed that baskets of mangoes have been sent to the leaders of the INDIA block by the Pakistan High Commission. These leaders include many MPs of the Samajwadi Party including Congress MP Rahul Gandhi.

Mangoes are already coming

Mango diplomacy is not new, in 1981, Pakistani President Zia-ul-Haq sent a basket of 'Anwar Rataul' mangoes to the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. After this, on the occasion of Eid in 2015, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif sent 10 kg of mangoes to Prime Minister Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee, Manmohan Singh and Atal Bihari Vajpayee, among many other leaders. Mango is considered the national fruit of India and Pakistan and mangoes are exported from India and Pakistan all over the world.

Bad relations with Pakistan

In the last few years, Pakistan has been named in promoting terrorist activities in the country. After Pakistan's involvement in Pulwama, Pathankot, Uri etc. attacks, the Indian government has limited trade and other relations with Pakistan. Pakistan is also a major reason behind the instability in Kashmir.