BENGALURU: The Congress’s national leadership continued its fussilade against the Centre over Operation Sindoor on Wednesday and blamed the government for not filling vacancies in the armed forces.
Speaking at the ‘Jai Hind Sabha’ organised by the party in the city, AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal slammed the Central Government for not calling a special Parliament session to demonstrate national unity on Operation Sindoor.
He said, “Several questions have emerged about Operation Sindoor. These need answers from the government. Why did our intelligence agencies fail to prevent the Pahalgam attack? We have also learned that an officer from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for allegedly leaking information related to the Pahalgam attack to Pakistan.” Venugopal also pointed out that the perpetrators of Pahalgam terror are yet to be arrested.
He also questioned the abrupt stoppage of Operation Sindoor. “The government has not explained the terms of the ceasefire with Pakistan. PM Narendra Modi has remained silent, even as US President Donald Trump claimed credit for the ceasefire. The PM’s silence raises serious concerns about the strength of our foreign policy. It appears decisions are being made not in Delhi, but in Washington, DC,” he said.
He said the Congress had posed several questions to the External Affairs Minister although not all could be made public. “The answers we received are not satisfactory.”
“Our Foreign Minister said that intelligence about the attack was shared in advance. If that’s the case, why wasn’t action taken to prevent it? And now he claims there was no intelligence before the operation. His contradictory statements are on public record,” Venugopal said.
Meanwhile, AICC General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala blamed the Centre for not filling the vacancies in the armed forces. “Our MPs raised questions in Parliament regarding the number of vacancies. Since 2023, the government has stopped publishing those statistics. At that time, 1.22 lakh positions were vacant. Experts now estimate this has risen to 1.75 lakh — including around 25,000 officer posts,” he said.
“The Air Force should have 45 to 48 air squadrons. Today, there are only 24 operational. As an Indian, I raise this question — not as a Congressman,” he said, adding, “If we do not recruit for our armed forces, how will we strengthen our military?”
He demanded the full implementation of the One Rank, One Pension scheme for the welfare of army personnel and emphasised the need to modernise the armed forces with drone capabilities and AI technologies.
'No excise duty on army canteens in state'
CM Siddaramaiah said that there will be no excise duty on army canteens in the state and that the State Government will establish an Ex-Servicemen Welfare Corporation. He announced the Jai Hind Sabha programme organised to felicitate retired servicemen and honour the families of martyred soldiers.
The chief guests of the event, AICC General Secretaries KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala, CM Siddaramaiah, and DyCM DK Shivakumar, were offered military jackets by army veterans which they wore in the event. Over nine family members of martyred soldiers from Karnataka, including the parents of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, were honoured by Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar.
Veteran army personnel were also felicitated. Siddaramaiah said that soldiers serve the nation with a spirit of sacrifice. Protecting the country is not only the responsibility of the Armed Forces but also of 140 crore Indians, he said, adding that Pakistan always provokes and instigates conflict. “We must bring Pakistan under control. India has never compromised in its history when it comes to protecting the nation, and it never will,” the CM said. He further said that soldiers, farmers, doctors, and teachers must be remembered as one’s own parents.