NEW DELHI: Escalating its attack on the government over the Uri terror attack, Congress today demanded the resignation of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, saying they should quit as they have "failed" to deliver.
As the BJP National Council meeting started at Kozhikode, the opposition party also advised BJP to introspect over the national security situation, which it claimed is "under siege" for the last over two years since the advent of the Narendra Modi government.
"Since they are not able to perform competently, they should quit," party spokesman Tom Vadakkan told reporters in reply to questions on Parrikar and Doval.
So far the Congress was only seeking the resignation of Parrikar.
Vadakkan said Prime Minister Modi should fix responsibility of his NSA and the Defence Minister, who, he claimed had "publicly boasted after Pathankot attack that without his permission no one can enter India".
Regarding the Uri attack, he said reports point to a "massive intelligence and operational failure" and wondered as to what is the accountability for this "failure".
"India's borders and national security have been under siege for last 2.5 years. There have been more than 900 ceasefire violations in Jammu and Kashmir," he said, targeting the Prime Minister for using "sari-shawl diplomacy" with Pakistan.
"Modi used rhetoric of '56 inch chest' before the Lok Sabha election and said he would bring back 10 heads in exchange for one. On becoming the PM, Modi has used sari-shawl diplomacy," he remarked.
He recalled that prior to the 2014 election, Modi constantly counselled the Congress government to "stop writing love letter" to Pakistan.
Slamming Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for his attack on India at the United Nations General Assembly, he dubbed Sharif as "vice chancellor of global university of terror". He said the global community is fully sensitised on the activities of the Pakistan establishment.
Faulting the Modi government over inviting ISI after the Pathankot attack to the very air force base, he said the NIA subsequently gave a "clean chit" to the Pakistani government.
"We hope they don't repeat that in the case of the Uri Attack," he added.
Alleging that the government's policy on Pakistan is based on "wholesale confusion rather than pragmatic cohesion", he said the net result has been that a renegade nation like Pakistan which stood isolated because of the policies of the UPA government is now attempting to re-position itself positively.
The party wanted the government to follow a three pronged strategy vis-à-vis Pakistan that would lead to its diplomatic isolation, besides imposition of economic sanctions against it and a resolute strategic response.