NEW DELHI – Indian opposition leaders who questioned the country’s bombingraid on Pakistan last week should be tied under fighter jets and droppedlike bombs when they stage a new mission, a government minister saidWednesday.
The comments inflamed an already bitter showdown between Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with theopposition over its claims that he has used the military strike to boosthis standing ahead of a national election.
The BJP has given conflicting accounts about the success of the air raid ona militant camp run by a group blamed for a February 14 suicide bombing inOccupied Kashmir that left 40 Indian paramilitaries dead.
Twelves days later Indian jets bombed what New Delhi called a “terrorist”training camp in Azad Kashmir taking the neighbours to the verge of a newwar.
BJP leaders, including party president Amit Shah, claimed up to 250 peoplewere killed in the cross-border raid. But the opposition has demanded thetoll be backed up and accused Modi of making political capital out of theattacks.
“I think when India does something (like this) again then the people fromopposition parties raising these questions can be tied under the jetsduring the raids so that they can look at the targets,” junior foreignminister V.K Singh told media.
“They can look at the targets when the bombs are fired and then can also bedropped (there) to count before coming back,” Singh added.
After the raid, the Indian government said “a very large number” ofJaish-e-Mohammed militants, commanders and trainers had been “eliminated”.
But no official figure on the damage has ever been given and Pakistan hasdenied there were any casualties.
With a national election to be called imminently, Modi’s BJP has stilltouted the mission at political rallies across the country.
“The government under Modi’s leadership carried out the air strike andkilled 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 earlierhowever, saying the raids were intended to give a lesson and not killanyone.
The differing accounts have increased demands that the government clarifyits toll.
“PM Modi has blatantly politicised the bravery and martyrdom of India’ssoldiers as a political pamphlet,” said Randeep Singh Surjewala, spokesmanfor the main opposition Congress party.
Modi “is indulging in shameless credit-seeking for the valour of armedforces as a last resort for the 2019 elections,” Surjewala added on Twitter.
A heated exchange between a top Modi cabinet minister, Piyush Goyal, and atelevision journalist went viral earlier this week.
The journalist, citing international media reports, asked Goyal why thegovernment has not given more details to back its claims of the mission’ssuccess.
Goyal said such questions were part of a “shameful” campaign “to belittleour armed forces”. – APP/AFP