Jul 16, 2024 11:48 AM IST
Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, attacked the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saying soldiers and their families were bearing the brunt of its wrong policies
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday called for a “careful recalibration” in security strategy amid the spate of terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir while blaming the government for acting as if everything is “business as usual” and nothing has changed even as army chief General Upendra Dwivedi briefed defence minister Rajnath Singh on the terror attack in Doda that left four soldiers dead.
Singh’s office said he spoke to Gen Dwivedi on Tuesday morning. “RM [Raksha Mantri or defense minister] was apprised of the ground situation and the ongoing Counter Terrorist Op in Doda by the Army Chief,” Singh’s office said on X.
Kharge emphasised that national security cannot be endangered by indulging in “false bravado, fake narratives, and high-decibel whitewashing.” Kharge said no words of strong and unequivocal condemnation will suffice for these acts of violence being perpetrated by cowardly terrorists. “They [the government] must know that increasingly Jammu region is bearing the brunt of these attacks,” he said in a post on X. He called for the need to collectively fight the scrouge of cross-border terrorism. “The Indian National Congress stands strongly with our valiant Armed Forces.”
He said their hearts go out to the families of four soldiers, including an officer, killed in Doda. Kharge added the four made the supreme sacrifice in the service of Bharat Mata. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the injured, and we wish a speedy and complete recovery. “
Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, attacked the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saying soldiers and their families were bearing the brunt of its wrong policies. He said such horrific incidents were happening one after the other. Gandhi added that it was extremely sad and worrying. He said the continuous terrorist attacks reflect how bad the situation is in Jammu and Kashmir. “Every patriotic Indian demands that the government take full responsibility for the repeated security lapses and strict action against the culprits who harm the country and the soldiers. In this hour of grief, the entire country stands united against terrorism,” he said on X.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said there have been 11 terror attacks in the last 78 days in Jammu alone. “This is a wholly new development. While we must demonstrate an effective collective response cutting across political parties, the question must also be asked: what happened to all those grand claims made by the self-anointed non-biological PM and the self-styled Chanakya?” Ramesh said on X, referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah.
Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha vowed to avenge the deaths of the soldiers and thwart the evil designs of terrorists and their associates. “I call upon the people to unite in the fight against terrorism & provide us accurate information so that we can intensify anti-terror operations & neutralise the terror ecosystem.”
The four soldiers, including a major, succumbed to their injuries after they were critically injured in the sixth major terror attack in the Jammu region this year.
A firefight was triggered when terrorists fired at a joint Rashtriya Rifles and Jammu and Kashmir Police’s Special Operations Group team involved in a cordon and search operation. The attack on Monday was the second in the Doda district since Tuesday last when an exchange of fire broke out between security forces and terrorists during a search operation. A day earlier, terrorists lobbed hand grenades and fired with automatic weapons at an army truck passing through Badnota village, around 250km away from the Doda firefight site, at Kathua in the Jammu region on Monday last.
Terror activity in areas south of the Pir Panjal mountains, which divide Jammu and Kashmir regions, including the Rajouri-Poonch sector, has spiked during the last two years. Seven soldiers were killed in counterterror operations in the Kashmir Valley last year compared to 20 in the Rajouri-Poonch sector.
