Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has publicly criticized the Pakistan Prime Minister's Office following reports that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was cropped out of a photograph taken during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit. Shinde stated that such actions would not diminish the stature of the Indian Prime Minister, either domestically or on the global stage, and suggested that India's influence remains significant regardless of such diplomatic slights.
The controversy emerged after social media users and political commentators noted discrepancies in the versions of the group photograph shared by different participating nations. The incident has sparked a fresh round of diplomatic friction, with Indian officials and political figures interpreting the edit as a deliberate attempt to downplay India's presence at the multilateral forum.
While the Pakistan PMO has not issued a formal statement regarding the specific editing of the image, the incident has been widely discussed in Indian media as an example of ongoing tensions between the two neighbors. Analysts suggest that such symbolic gestures are common in the high-stakes environment of regional diplomacy, where every visual detail is scrutinized for potential political signaling. The event underscores the fragile nature of India-Pakistan relations, even within the framework of international organizations like the SCO.
The story is based on public statements made by Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde regarding a widely circulated image from the SCO summit. While the political criticism is a matter of record, the underlying claim of intentional cropping by the Pakistan PMO is a matter of political interpretation and contention between the two nations.
No corroborating trusted sources found.
Original report: Zee News