NEW DELHI: Pakistan is dressing up a Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp in Balakot that was bombed by Indian Air Force planes on February 26, to claim it had nothing to do with terror, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said here on Sunday.
“We’ve been told Balakot area is being reconstructed by Pakistan to show that a school is being run there, so that people can be taken there and shown that no terror camp existed,” he said.
Modi said he took the decision to launch air strikes at Balakot as he thought the game should be played from where it was being remote-controlled.
Pakistan, he pointed out, cannot acknowledge damages to terror sites deep inside its own territory in the IAF bombings, as it has been telling the international community that it does not support any such group on its soil.
“Pakistan is in a fix because if it acknowledges the air strikes of February 26, it will have to accept that there were JeM terror camps there. They have been saying that there are no terror camps. Now they have to hide it,” he said.
The PM’s comments came during his Main bhi Chowkidar interactive campaign, which was beamed across India at 500 places where party workers heard him through video-conferencing.
Modi hinted that if he gets re-elected as the Prime Minister, his government would act tough against corruption, saying he was committed to fulfil the responsibilities placed on him by the voters who chose to make him the nation's watchman five years ago.
"I will not let anybody filch your money under my watch. It is my responsibility as the chowkidar to make sure that the nation's wealth is safe," he said.
The event was attended, among others, by BJP chief Amit Shah and several Union ministers and chief ministers at different places across the country.
"In the last five years, I put all my strength to do what was lacking, to fulfil the necessities from toilets, electricity, roads, trains to buses. Now in next five years, our focus would be on to build a strong structure.
"In the first five years, the government tried to fulfil the basis requirements and the next five years will be to address the ambitions and aspirations of the country," he said to a query about his focus if he returns as the Prime Minister.
Modi said in the last five years, he successfully sent those who looted the country through different means of corruption to jail and will act as much tough if he gets re-elected.
He also attacked the Congress for its election promise of NYAY and others and urged the voters to be careful about such kind of promises.
"When elections come, political parties start announcing attractive schemes. But voters should check their track record and should not listen to their tape recorder," he said.
Modi also attacked the previous Congress-led UPA government, saying its leaders lacked the political will to test-fire the anti-satellite missile (A-SAT) despite the country having the capability to develop it.
“They were chosen for the task by the people, but they failed to live up to it,” he said, adding his government has the will to withstand pressure and take decisions in national interest.
Modi rubbished the argument that the A-SAT launch should have been kept a secret. “By that yardstick, why was Pokhran not kept a secret (in 1974),” he asked.
(With IANS inputs)