Modi has abused bravery of soldiers: Congress comeback on Modi’s surgical strike jibe
New
Delhi,
May
04:
The
Congress
party
hit
back
after
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
said
that
the
party
was
lying
about
the
surgical
strikes
carried
out
under
the
UPA
government.
In
a
statement,
the
Congress
said
that
Modi's
statement
is
an
abuse
to
the
bravery
of
soldiers
and
it
has
never
used
the
strikes
as
election
fodder.
The Congress said Modi's "shameless utterances" that surgical strikes were only on "paper" and Congress leaders thought of them like video games were a direct abuse to the indomitable courage and bravery of the soldiers."Tragically, Modiji has even faulted the statement of the then Army chief, General Bikram Singh on the surgical strike dated December 23, 2013. This reflects political bankruptcy of a prime minister when faced with an imminent defeat in the 2019 elections," the party claimed in a statement.
At the rally in Rajasthan's Sikar, Modi said a Congress leader had claimed four months back that three surgical strikes were conducted during the Congress' term and now another leader is saying six surgical strikes were carried out by the party."The number increased from three to six in four months. By the time elections are over, this number would increase to 600. What does it matter when the strike is on paper! The Congress only speaks lies," the prime minister said. "I think such leaders play video games and perhaps enjoy surgical strikes thinking of it as some game," he said.
In New Delhi, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel told reporters,"My blood is blood. Your blood is water. The strike that has been done by this government is genuine, but the strike that was done during the previous government, by soldiers and our air force, was it a surgical strike on paper only?" He said that this is an insult of the soldiers who conducted air strikes under previous governments.
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"In Congress, we have always said that such operations have been conducted by the armed forces. We have never tried to take credit. We have never used such strikes as election fodder. The way our soldiers' martyrdom is being used currently, nothing can be more shameful than that," he added. The party said in the statement that after the surgical strike of September 28-29, 2016, and the air strike of February 25-26, 2019, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi had hailed the armed forces for demolishing the terror infrastructure. "The Congress has always stood resolutely with our brave armed forces.
The great wars of 1947, 1962, 1965, 1971 and 1999 are testimony of the heroism of our armed forces," the party added.