Finance Ministry dismisses media reports of India requesting Italy to cut financing for Pakistan

Amid heightened public outrage and growing pressure on the Modi government to hold Pakistan accountable for cross-border terrorism. India has suspended the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan, expelled diplomats, sealed borders, revoked visas, and imposed a complete trade ban.

Meanwhile, on May 5, the news agency ANI (Archive), citing an unnamed source, published a report claiming that India had asked the Italian government to cut financial support to Pakistan during a meeting between Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her Italian counterpart Giancarlo Giorgetti, held on the sidelines of the 58th ADB Annual Meeting in Milan. The report further alleged that, in a separate meeting with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), India had urged the bank to suspend funding to Pakistan. Media outlets such as Times Now (Archive) and The Economic Times (Archive), along with several social media users, have also echoed and amplified the claim. However, the claim turned out to be false. (Check the posts here and here.)

On May 5, the official X handle of the Union Ministry of Finance issued a clarification, stating that the claim is “incorrect and has no basis.” The post also included screenshots of reports by WION News, Times Now, and ANI, highlighting how the misinformation was amplified by various media outlets.

The X handle of PIB Fact Check also issued a clarification on the same date, stating that the “claim is completely fake and India has not made any such request.”

On May 6, Financial Express reported that both the Union Ministry of Finance and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) had dismissed media claims suggesting that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman demanded a reduction in funding to Pakistan amid heightened tensions following the Pahalgam terror attack.

The ADB also issued a clarification, which read: “The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is aware of media reports claiming that issues related to Pakistan were discussed during the bilateral meeting between ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa and Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on the sidelines of the 58th ADB Annual Meeting in Milan, Italy. These media reports are incorrect. Issues related to Pakistan were not discussed during the bilateral meeting.”