NEW DELHI – Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been hit back hard at home byCongress leaders over his “boastful” claims of the 2016 ‘surgical strike’in Pakistani territory, a claim repeated by Modi on the sidelines of theongoing Commonwealth summit.

During an event in London on Wednesday, Modi had said said that india wouldhit back at terrorism and will respond to them “in the language theyunderstand”, referring to the 2016 so-called surgical strikes across theLine of Control (LoC).

He had claimed that before making the news of the ‘surgical strikes’public, India had repeatedly attempted to contact Pakistan government toinform them about the operation.

Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO), however, rejected the claims on Thursday,saying: “Constant repetition of a fallacious claim does not make it real.The Indian government is increasingly sounding like a broken record.”

On Friday, India’s opposition Congress party also denounced Modi’sstatements, terming them a “disaster”, according tolink>*Timesof Indialink>*.

In a statement issued by Congress’ senior spokesperson, Anand Sharma, theopposition party said: “Prime Minister Modi’s cavalier conduct of foreignpolicy at the Commonwealth Summit in London and the bilateral meeting withthe British prime minister is hurting India’s national interests.”

“The prime minister’s ‘boastful’ claims on surgical strike neutralisingcross-border terror is ’embarrassing’,” he was quoted as saying by the *PressTrust of Indialink>*.

“He needs a firm reminder that India engages with its strategic partnercountries with maturity and gravitas, and does not take sides or make anuninformed statement on issues of disputes between two strategic partnercountries,” Sharma said.

“The BJP government’s Pakistan policy is a disaster. It is both unfortunateand unbecoming of him to say that India’s prime minister speaks to Pakistanin its own language,” he added.