Alia Bhatt's mother Soni Razdan shares petition to stop India-Pakistan ‘hostilities’: ‘Peace, not war’

Alia Bhatt's mother, actor Soni Razdan, took to her Instagram account to join peace activists amid the conflict between India and Pakistan. She amplified a petition to stop the ‘hostilities’ between India and Pakistan.

Soni Razdan shares peace petition

Sharing the petition on Instagram, Soni wrote, “Above all - PEACE Sign the petition. Link in bio.” While Soni has shared the link of the petition, she also turned off comments on her post.

The petition read: "India, Pakistan: Stop the hostilities.'

See post here:

It mentioned, "We, peace activists from India, Pakistan and elsewhere, categorically condemn every form of violent extremism and terrorism. We particularly condemn the targeting of unarmed civilians, for any reason, including as a means to achieve political ends.

“This cycle must end for peace to prevail. Communal and faith-based politics feeding frenzy on both sides, amplified by media and social media, gives the illusion of a consensus for war. This loud warmongering puts tremendous pressure on governments and armed forces on both sides, as well as inciting the public. It has severely vitiated the political climate in Southasia*, fostering mistrust among citizens. Sustainable peace requires a collective rejection of such divisive ideologies by the people of the region.”

"India and Pakistan must behave responsibly. Any war between these two nuclear-armed nations would be disastrous. As history shows, it is ordinary citizens who suffer the most in conflict, especially women, children, minorities, the elderly, and other vulnerable communities forced to prove their patriotism. We therefore urge the people of India and Pakistan to hold their governments accountable and resist any speech or action that feeds war hysteria. We strongly oppose any attempts to weaponize shared natural resources or historic bilateral agreements. Suspending longstanding agreements like the Indus Water Treaty (1960) or like the Shimla Accord (1972) would erode the basic framework of legality and civility in bilateral relations. We call on all those who believe that peace, not war, is the way forward, to speak out against the politics of hate, violence, and vengeance, and to stand up for dialogue, cooperation, and a shared future of peace and co-existence,” it further added.

So far, the petition has 3,706 signatures.

India and Pakistan conflict

The conflict between India and Pakistan began after the terror attack on Kashmir's Pahalgam region, killing 26 people.

Reacting to the Pahalgam attack, Soni was among the many celebrities who condemned the killing. She wrote, “Heartbroken by this tragedy. We must not let terror win. We must not let our faith in true humanity waver. Let us stand together as one and not get caught up in a vicious political and religious spiral. That is exactly what they want.”