NEW DELHI: The Congress on Tuesday demanded that the Narendra Modi government should come out with a white paper on the Pulwama attack providing answers to questions such as what were the ”intelligence failures” and why troops were denied aircraft.
Days after former Jammu and Kashmir governor Satypal Malik’s allegations over the 2019 Pulwama attack, the Congress held a press conference here by Col (retd) Rohit Chaudhry and Wing Commander (retd) Anuma Acharya, both associated with the party, and posed a series of questions to the government on the attack in which 40 CRPF jawans were killed.
जब पुलवामा हमला हुआ तो मीडिया ने राहुल गांधी जी से पूछा कि-
क्या ये इंटेलिजेंस फेल्योर नहीं है, क्या जवानों को हवाई मार्ग से नहीं लाया जा सकता था?
राहुल गांधी जी ने जवानों के परिजनों के प्रति संवेदना जताई, इस घटना के लिए चिंता व्यक्त की लेकिन कोई राजनीतिक बात नहीं की।
— Congress (@INCIndia) April 18, 2023
There has been no reaction from the government since Malik’s interview to a news portal was released, while the BJP has said that there were serious questions about his credibility and cited various statements made by him in recent years.
The BJP had cited Malik’s past remarks, including the one that mocked former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi as a ”political juvenile”, and slammed him as the ”disgraced” governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
पूर्व थल सेना प्रमुख जनरल शंकर रॉयचौधरी (रि.) ने जवानों की सुरक्षा के लिए जो चिंताएं जताई हैं, वो रक्षा बिरादरी समेत पूरे देश के लिए बेहद अहम हैं।
मोदी सरकार की इस नाकामी और जवानों के प्रति असंवेदनशीलता के बारे में विस्तार से बता रहे हैं रि. कर्नल श्री रोहित चौधरी जी, सुनिए..👇 pic.twitter.com/AFOrLPXi81
— Congress (@INCIndia) April 18, 2023
Congress spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil said the party did not make any political statement over an incident like Pulwama in 2019 but had to raise this issue as concerns have been expressed by former army chief Gen (retd) Shankar Roychowdhury in an interview.
Chaudhry and Acharya, the two armed forces veterans, said the defence fraternity and the entire nation share the concerns of Malik and Gen. Roychowdhury.
They posed questions to the prime minister on the basis of the assertions by the former army chief.
The revelations made by Satya Pal Malik ji raise serious questions-
Q: How did the attacks take place?
Q: What led to the intel failure?
Q: Why were aircrafts denied to the troops?
Q: Who evaded the responsibility?The nation demands an answer!
: Col Rohit Chaudhary (Rtd.) pic.twitter.com/14RPSe9xWO
— Congress (@INCIndia) April 18, 2023
Why were 2,500 CRPF soldiers not allowed to travel by air despite their request, they asked.
They also asked as to why were intelligence inputs between January 2, 2019 and February 13, 2019 warning of a terrorist attack ignored.
”How did the militants procure around 300 kg of explosives? How could this huge quantity remain undetected despite heavy security presence in South Kashmir, especially the Pulwama-Anantnag-Avantipora belt,” Chaudhry said.
”Four years after the attack, how far has the inquiry progressed? Why is there a delay in completing the inquiry and letting the nation know its findings?” they said.
हमारी सरकार से मांग है कि पुलवामा हमले की विस्तृत जांच हो और उसकी रिपोर्ट को सार्वजनिक किया जाए।
सरकार एक श्वेत पत्र भी जारी करे ताकि संवेदनशील इलाकों में तैनात सैनिकों की सुरक्षा और मजबूत हो।
: विंग कमांडर (रि.) @AnumaVidisha जी pic.twitter.com/WcVBZGSroo
— Congress (@INCIndia) April 18, 2023
At the Congress presser, the two army veterans said that in previous terror attacks, such as the Mumbai attacks in 2011 and the Pathankot attack in 2016, inquiries were held and findings made public. This was essential to establish the truth, fix responsibility, and strengthen India’s national security.
In Pulwama too, these serious questions must be addressed, they said.
”Therefore, we demand that the government of India publish a white paper on the Pulwama attacks, describing — how the attacks took place, what were the ”intelligence failures”, why troops were denied aircraft, what security lapses occurred and the role of CRPF, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Defence, National Security Advisor and the Prime Minister’s Office,” the veterans said.
The Congress had on Saturday demanded that the Centre reveal the outcome of the probe into the Pulwama incident and asked why the paramilitary personnel were ”denied” aircraft and made to commute by road despite the terror attack threat.
BJP’s I-T department head Amit Malviya had on Saturday tweeted an old remark of Malik, who has become a strong critic of the government in recent years, praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the ”best PM” for Jammu and Kashmir, to hit out at his ”U-turn”.
Source: Press Trust of India
