Congress President Rahul Gandhi, who was in UAE for two days till Saturday, slammed Pakistan for state-sponsored violence against India.

In strong words, the 48-year-old Congress chief said that Islamabad should not expect New Delhi to talk “kindly” till the acts of terror against India continue.

“I am all for peaceful relations with Pakistan but will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out against innocent Indians by Pak state,” he said at a press conference in Dubai on Saturday evening.

“This is the central issue here; you cannot carry out acts of terror in India and then expect India to talk kindly to you,” Gandhi said.

The Congress chief was responding to a question on the overtures made by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Gandhi, who is eyeing the Prime Minister’s chair in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections 2019, asserted that a Congress government at the Centre will adopt a tough line on the neighbouring state.

Accusing India of not responding to his peace overtures, Imran Khan had recently said that any war between two nuclear-armed nations would be suicidal for them.

His Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) had said that Khan again expressed his desire for talks with India during an interview with a Turkish media house.

“Two nuclear armed countries should not even think of a war; not even a Cold War because it could worsen any time. The only way is bilateral talks. Two nuclear armed countries at war is like a suicide,” the party quoted him as saying.

India, on the other hand, has been maintaining that terror and talks cannot go together.

On 11 January, India’s External Affairs Ministry said in a statement that there was “no seriousness” in Islamabad’s “offer for talks” as it continued to extend “explicit support” to terror organisations.

MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, “I don’t understand these statements. Even before Imran Khan became Prime Minister, our Prime Minister had called and congratulated him on his election win.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi and external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj also wrote to their counterparts and congratulated them after they assumed office, he said at a media briefing.

Asking why Pakistan has still not taken any action against the terrorists involved in Mumbai and Pathankot terror attacks, Kumar hit out at Pakistan for supporting and allowing terrorists to use its soil for targeting other nations.