Badal targets Amarinder,Kejriwal on surgical strikes remarks

Chandigarh, Oct 7: Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today criticised his Delhi counter-part Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh for their statements on the recent surgical strikes.

"Amarinder and Kejriwal should realise that it is not for politicos to adjudicate on strategic security matters," Badal said in a statement here today.

"Amarinder and Arvind Kejriwal have tried to make the Indian army's capabilities and intent look suspect in the eyes of the world at a most critical hour. The entire nation is stunned, angered and dismayed over their statements.

It is mysterious why they are trying to hurt the entire nation at this critical hour," he said. He also lashed out against those who are criticising the decisions taken jointly by the Government of India and the security forces.

He said whether or not to reveal evidence on surgical strikes and when to execute "pre-emptive civilian relocation" are issues to be decided on highly professional grounds. The Punjab Government, he stated, had fully implemented the directive of the Centre on the security-driven issue of "pre-emptive civilian evacuation and relocation on border areas."

He emphasised that it was not for the state governments to decide on whether or not or when to execute pre-emptive relocation. Meanwhile, Badal in a letter to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh referred to Amarinder and Kejriwal's "duplicitous and deliberately mischievous statements on sensitive issues of border security."

The Chief Minister in his letter said, "This is an unpardonable sin as the Congress and the AAP leaders are treating our soldiers' heroic deeds to mere fodder for their petty politicking."

Badal said it was absurd and ironical that "only three voices in the entire world have treated the border evacuation and the surgical strikes with suspicion.

One of these three voices belonged understandably to Pakistan and the other two belong to Kejriwal and Amarinder." He accused the AAP and the Congress leaders of "trying to create confusion in the people's minds about temporary civilian relocation in border areas as well as on the crucial decision of the armed forces about the release of evidence on strikes across the LoC in and Jammu and Kashmir.

No country can ever allow such suicidal statements." "... such issues are handled all over the world through a broad national consensus on strategic considerations," the letter added.

PTI