HYDERABAD: Alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi stopped military action against Pakistan after a threat from US President Donald Trump, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday demanded that the PM disclose how many Rafale jets were lost during the conflict.
Addressing the gathering after participating in the Congress’ Jai Hind Rally held from VNR Vignana Jyothi Engineering College to KGR Convention at Nizampet in Hyderabad in explicit solidarity with Indian armed forces and in support of Operation Sindoor, the chief minister questioned why the Union government did not organise an all-party meeting when it agreed to a ceasefire in the recent conflict with Pakistan.
Revanth alleged that Modi had mortgaged the self-respect of 140 crore Indians to Trump.
“Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge attended the all-party meeting held prior to the conflict. They extended full support to the Centre. They also made it clear that India should fight Pakistan and annex PoK.
But the Modi government called off the war in a hurry, just four days after the initial military strike on Pakistan. Why was another all-party meeting not held to seek opinions before declaring a ceasefire?” the CM asked the Union government.
It takes a bold and determined leader to prepare for war, Revanth said, pointing to former PM Indira Gandhi’s declaration of war on Pakistan and her stern warning to the neighbouring country.
‘Why didn’t you act against China after Galwan?’
Suggesting that Modi take inspiration from Indira, he criticised the former for not taking any action against the neighbouring country after Colonel Santosh Babu was killed in the fight against the Chinese army at Galwan.
He also recalled “invincible leader Indira’s strong warning to America when it tried to mediate between India and Pakistan during the 1971 war”. “It was Indira Gandhi who taught a befitting lesson to Pakistan by dividing the enemy country into two,” he said.
“Leadership is not a simple thing. War is not about giving speeches. To go to war, you need courage and proper strategies. Only a leader with courage wins a war,” he added.
The CM, meanwhile, wondered why the BJP leadership was organising Tiranga Rallies. “The war is not your business. It is an important issue of national security. The BJP is trying to take political advantage with Tiranga Rallies,” he said and added that the Congress is organising Jai Hind Yatra to instil confidence among Indian soldiers, who, according to him, were demoralised by the BJP’s moves.
Describing Modi as a spent force, the CM appealed to party cadre and leaders to strive hard and not relax until Rahul Gandhi takes over as prime minister.
He asserted that India needs a strong leader like Rahul in these difficult times. AICC state in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan and TPCC chief Mahesh Kumar Goud were among a host of Congress leaders who participated in the rally.