Pakistan Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar Ali Khan has united bitter rivals Congress, the left of the center political outfit, which rules India in alliance with fringe political groups, and the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Khan’s statement that ascent of BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi into prime minister’s chair would destabilize peace in the region, given in reaction to the latter’s claim on Dawood Ibrahim, India’s top fugitive terrorist allegedly sheltered in Pakistan for over two decades, has no takers either in the BJP or the Congress.

The two parties in fact have joined hands to condemn the statement as a proof of Islamabad’s attempt to interfere in New Delhi’s internal matters.

BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi strongly objected to Khan’s assertion that Modi, “it seems, did not learn from his shameful mistakes of past (read 2002 Gujarat riots which left over 2,000 people dead) when he had earned a bad name as chief minister of Indian Gujarat.”

Lekhi said since Pakistan faced serious allegations of human rights violation and was torn by sectarian strife, it had no right to talk of safety of Muslims in India.

Balbir Punj, another BJP spokesman, criticized Pakistan for a “brazen enough” attempt to interfere in India’s internal relations. Punj said Pakistan and its friends within India were despaired by the prospect of Modi becoming prime minister of India.

Congress spokesman and former Union Minister Shakeel Ahmed also advised Pakistan to “stay in limits” and not to interfere in India’s internal politics adding that the Indians were capable of handling their own affairs. Indian Minister for Information & Broadcasting Manish Tiwari termed Khan’s statement “unfortunate,” demanded handing over of Dawood and asked Islamabad to address India’s concern on cross border terrorism.

Khan had said that Modi’s indirect claim on pulling Dawood out of Pakistan through a clandestine operation teetered on “touching last limit of enmity toward Pakistan.”

The Pakistani minister cautioned New Delhi against a misadventure by saying that Pakistani forces had the power and the right to pay back in the same coin.

In an interview with a Gujarati News Channel last week, Modi had indicated that his government might launch an operation for Dawood similar to the kind US Navy Seals conducted to neutralize Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan. Modi criticized Indian Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde for asserting that US’ FBI would help New Delhi in retrieving Dawood.

Dawood Ibrahim, who is accused of masterminding 1993 blasts in Mumbai, is wanted by a number of investigative agencies in India including the CBI.