Why did Defence Minister speak about names of Pakistani missiles? Explained

Hyderabad, Aug 03: Asserting that Indian military's main aim is peace and stability in the region, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said that Pakistan always tries to project aggression. He compared names of Indian and Pakistani missiles to make a point that Islamabad glorifies barbaric invaders from the history by naming missiles after them.

Speaking in Hyderabad, the Defence Minister re-iterated that on terrorism, India's policy will remain that of zero-tolerance.

"In India, defence forces are not maintained to attack other nations. Our defence forces work for peace and stability at regional, continental, global levels...Missiles here are named Prithvi, Akash, Agni, Trishul, BrahMos. They invoke balance, patience and destruction if needed," Rajnath Singh said.

"When it comes to missile technology, sometimes people want to see country's aggression in missile technology's development. Our neighbour names their missiles after attackers-Babur,Ghori,Ghaznavi missiles. Such names are kept so that Pakistan can project aggression... On issues like terrorism, we have been successful in making the world understand that terrorism is terrorism for everyone. We have told the world that nothing short of zero tolerance is acceptable on this matter," he added.

The facts about names of Pakistani missiles:

What is interesting is the names of the Pakistani missiles. Abdali, Ghaznavi and Ghauri are names of some of these Pakistani missiles. Who are these Abdalis and Ghaznavis? These were ruthless, bloodthirsty invaders from the middle east who left a trail of blood in India. Pakistan must not forget that it was once part of India and these invaders plundered the very region which is now called Pakistan.

Ghaznavi, Ghauri, and Taimur left a trail of blood wherever they went and looted the locals. They destroyed temples, forced conversions and tormented the local people. Mahmud Ghaznavi, an 11th-century Persian invader of Turkic origin, invaded India 17 times and attained notoriety for destroying and looting the Somnath Temple.

Ahmed Shah Abdali, an 18th-century Afghan king is known for the holocaust his army carried out on Sikhs. Between 1748 and 1765, Abdali invaded India 7 times and is also known for the humiliation he brought to the then Mughal dynasty.

Taimur invaded Delhi in 1398 and his invasion was followed by one of the brutal massacres which Delhi saw in the medieval ages. Babur was different from the above mentioned middle-eastern kings in the sense that he settled in India and founded the Mughal Dynasty. Even he is said to have destroyed Hindu temples.

Pakistan just does not want to come out of the mindset that Muslims are rightful rulers of the subcontinent. Even the history taught at schools in Pakistan emphasises more on Islamic rule during the Mughal period than of the freedom struggle and Vedic times. There is little mention of Mahatma Gandhi and other freedom fighters in their textbooks.

They try to imbibe this idea among their people that Muslims are the rightful rulers of India and that Hindus usurped power from them. After the 1947 partition, Pakistan was formed and their entire identity hinges on Islam.

By naming missiles on Muslim invaders, they are trying to send a message that "We will plunder you in the same way that these tyrants did." It also highlights that Pakistan would ardently cling on to anything which is opposed to the Indian identity and these missile names are the most visible proof of this fact.