A Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Telangana has released a song remarkably similar to a patriotic anthem produced by the Pakistani military’s media wing, prompting reactions from social media users on both sides of the border.

Raja Singh in a tweet on Friday announced that he would release a new song on April 14 on the occasion of Ram Navmi as a tribute to the Indian army.

However, the tune and lyrics of Singh’s track were almost identical to that of the Inter-Services Public Relations song released ahead of Pakistan Day in March and sung by Sahir Ali Bagga. However, Singh altered the lyrics from “Pakistan Zindabad” to “Hindustan Zindabad”.

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Commenting on Singh’s video on Twitter from his personal account, Major General Asif Ghafoor, the director general of Pakistan’s ISPR, on Sunday said: “Glad that you copied. But copy to speak the truth as well.”

The “speak the truth” is a reference to Pakistan’s rejection of the Indian claim that the Indian Air Force had downed a Pakistani F-16 fighter jet during a dogfight in February. Islamabad says that its account of the escalation has been supported by international media reports, with US-based Foreign Policy magazine citing unidentified US defence officials to contradict the Indian claim.

Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir said the BJP lawmaker’s song was “not [a] copy but theft” and described Singh’s rendition as “unimpressive”.

Others on social media couldn’t help taking a dig at Singh either.

This is a slightly edited version of an article that first appeared on Dawn.com.