Outrage as Indian minister suggests opponents be 'tied under jets'

Published March 7, 2019
An Indian Air Force Jaguar strike fighter nears an Indian Air Force aerial tanker during the last mission of Cooperative Cope Thunder 2004.
(Source: http://anupkumarchaturvedi.com/Anupspage773.html)
An Indian Air Force Jaguar strike fighter nears an Indian Air Force aerial tanker during the last mission of Cooperative Cope Thunder 2004. (Source: http://anupkumarchaturvedi.com/Anupspage773.html)

Indian opposition leaders who question the country's bombing raid on Pakistan last week should be tied under fighter jets and dropped like bombs when they stage a new mission, a government minister said on Wednesday.

The comments inflamed an already bitter showdown between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with the opposition over its claims that he has used the military strike to boost his standing ahead of a national election.

The BJP has given conflicting accounts about the success of the air raid on a militant camp run by a group blamed for a February 14 suicide bombing in Kashmir that left 40 Indian paramilitaries dead.

Twelve days later Indian jets bombed what New Delhi called a “terrorist” training camp inside Pakistan territory taking the neighbours to the verge of a new war.

BJP leaders, including party president Amit Shah, claimed up to 250 people were killed in the cross-border raid. But the opposition has demanded the toll be backed up and accused Modi of making political capital out of the attacks.

Take a look: *When truth is the first casualty*

“I think when India does something (like this) again then the people from opposition parties raising these questions can be tied under the jets during the raids so that they can look at the targets,” junior foreign minister V.K Singh told media.

“They can look at the targets when the bombs are fired and then can also be dropped (there) to count before coming back,” Singh added.

After the raid, the Indian government said “a very large number” of Jaish-e-Mohammed militants, commanders and trainers had been “eliminated”.

But no official figure on the damage has ever been given and Pakistan has denied there were any casualties.

With a national election to be called imminently, Modi's BJP has still touted the mission at political rallies across the country.

“The government under Modi's leadership carried out the air strike and killed more than 250 terrorists,” Shah, one of Modi's closest lieutenants, told one rally this week.

SS Ahluwalia, a junior minister, came up with a different claim earlier however, saying the raids were intended to give a lesson and not kill anyone.

The differing accounts have increased demands that the government clarify its toll.

Read: India refuses to share proof of air strikes in Balakot

“PM Modi has blatantly politicised the bravery and martyrdom of India's soldiers as a political pamphlet,” said Randeep Singh Surjewala, spokesman for the main opposition Congress party.

Modi “is indulging in shameless credit-seeking for the valour of armed forces as a last resort for the 2019 elections,” Surjewala added on Twitter.

A heated exchange between a top Modi cabinet minister, Piyush Goyal, and a television journalist went viral earlier this week.

The journalist, citing international media reports, asked Goyal why the government has not given more details to back its claims of the mission's success.

Goyal said such questions were part of a “shameful” campaign “to belittle our armed forces”.

Opinion

Editorial

‘Source of terror’
Updated 29 Mar, 2024

‘Source of terror’

It is clear that going after militant groups inside Afghanistan unilaterally presents its own set of difficulties.
Chipping in
29 Mar, 2024

Chipping in

FEDERAL infrastructure development schemes are located in the provinces. Most such projects — for instance,...
Toxic emitters
29 Mar, 2024

Toxic emitters

IT is concerning to note that dozens of industries have been violating environmental laws in and around Islamabad....
Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...