Why wasn't it made public: Rajnath questions Rahul Gandhi’s surgical strikes claim

Jaipur, Dec 2: Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday took a scathing attack on Congress chief Rahul Gandhi for claiming that three surgical strikes were conducted under the previous UPA government.

"Rahul says three surgical strikes happened during Manmohan Singh's regime. Why is he revealing that now? Why wasn't it told earlier? Why was Congress Hide Valour of Our Armed Forces? Why were they trying to hide the valour of our armed forces? People have a right to know achievements of Army." Singh said during a rally in Rajasthan's Bansur district.

On Saturday, Gandhi claimed that three surgical strikes were carried out during former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's tenure but it wasn't publicised as the "Army wanted it to be a secret".

claimed that the Narendra Modi government shaped the Army's 2016 surgical strike into a "political asset". Rahul had alleged that the surgical strike was made public as the BJP was fighting elections in Uttar Pradesh.

Referring to the surgical strikes on terror pads across the LoC on 29 September 2016, he had said: "Like during the Narendra Modi government, surgical strike was conducted thrice during Manmohan Singh government. Are you aware of it? Modi actually reached into the Army's domain and shaped surgical strike into a political asset."

Singh also accused the Congress of creating "crisis of distrust". "Cong created "crisis of distrust" in politics. There is difference in their words and deeds," he said.