Who Is Petal Gahlot? Indian Diplomat Who Shredded Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif At UNGA

Indian diplomat Petal Gahlot. (United Nations/YouTube)

Petal Gahlot, first secretary in India’s Permanent Mission to the UN, issued a strong response to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for his remarks on Kashmir and the Indus Waters Treaty. Launching a fiery and fact-packed rebuttal, Gahlot called out Islamabad for glorifying terrorism and engaging in “absurd theatrics”.

While exercising India’s right of reply at the UNGA, Indian diplomat Petal Gahlot in response to Sharif’s speech, said that terrorism is “central to Pakistan’s foreign policy”.

Gahlot called out Pakistan for protecting ‘The Resistance Front’, the terror outfit responsible for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. She further recalled Pakistan’s attempt to shelter al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, even while pretending to partner in the war against terrorism.

“No degree of drama and no level of lies can conceal the facts. This is the very same Pakistan which, at the UN Security Council on April 25, 2025, shielded ‘The Resistance Front’, a Pakistani-sponsored terror outfit, from the responsibility of carrying out the barbaric massacre of tourists in the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir,” Gahlot said.

Who Is Petal Gahlot?

Born in New Delhi, Petal Gahlot studied political science at St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai, before completing her master’s degree at Lady Shri Ram College for Women, University of Delhi.

She then joined the prestigious Indian Foreign Service (IFS) in 2015 and has steadily built a reputation as a poised, articulate representative of India on the global stage.

Over the last decade, Gahlot has handled a range of assignments. She served as assistant secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi, as third and second secretary at the Embassy of India in Paris, and as Consul at the Consulate General of India in San Francisco.

Away from the corridors of diplomacy, Gahlot has a creative side. She is a regular guitar player and singer, often sharing her passion for music with friends and colleagues.

Her musical prowess came to the forefront when she performed a cover of the iconic Italian song “Bella Ciao,” which gained widespread recognition on X. Her rendition of “Lost On You” by LP is another testament to her musical abilities.