Published : 02 Sep 2026, 06:07 AM
Updated : 16 Sep 2026, 11:46 AM
Pakistan's Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has cropped Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and four other heads of state out of a group photograph from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.
The PMO shared the edited image on X on Tuesday from the SCO leaders’ summit in Bishkek, leaving Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the centre of the frame, ThePrint reports.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was also left out of the photo, despite what the Indian news outlet described as his frontal role in ceasefire talks between Tehran and Washington.
The post captioned the image as a group photograph of Sharif with heads of state at the SCO Council of Heads of State Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on Sept 1.
The Indian PMO, by contrast, posted the full photograph, in which Sharif can be seen standing fourth from the right.
Indian social media users were quick to point out the difference.
Indian journalist Zafar Chowdhury called the move “undiplomatic and discourteous” on X, saying the cropping of five SCO leaders appeared designed to position Sharif as a central figure, and that the post coming from the prime minister's official handle made it more embarrassing.
His remarks came as Pakistan prepares to take over the SCO presidency from the Kyrgyz Republic and host the next leaders' summit.
India has repeatedly raised concerns over cross-border terrorism from Pakistan.
Tensions rose after the April 2025 Pahalgam attack, in which 26 people were killed after being singled out by religion.
India responded with Operation Sindoor, targeting “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
New Delhi has yet to say how prominently it will engage with the SCO under Pakistan's presidency.
Foreign secretary-level officials have said the decision rests with the “appropriate authorities at the appropriate time”, ThePrint said.
The SCO marks 25 years since its founding. It began as the Shanghai Five, grouping China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.
Uzbekistan joined in 2001, followed by India and Pakistan in 2017, and later Iran and Belarus.
