Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Tuesday created a stir on the fourth anniversary of the deadly Pulwama attack which claimed the lives of 40 CRPF soldiers, saying that they died due to “blatant intelligence failure”.
“Today we pay homage to the 40 CRPF Martyrs who died because of the blatant Intelligence Failure in Pulwama. I hope all the Martyred Families have been suitably rehabilitated,” the former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh tweeted.
At least 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel lost their lives after a suicide bomber rammed a car laden with explosives into the security force convoy in 2019.
Reacting to Singh’s remarks, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan demanded that the “DNA” of the Congress party should be examined.
“I think Digvijayji’s intelligence has failed, it is his failure. He insults the country’s Army and speaks the language of Pakistan. He tries to demoralise the Army,” Chouhan told reporters.
Seeking a reply from former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party MP Rahul Gandhi on this issue, Chouhan said an investigation is needed to find out “who sowed the seeds in Singh’s mind to speak against the country and the Army. Congress’ DNA should be examined as the party talks about uniting India (Bharat Jodo Yatra) but marches with those who talk about breaking India”.
Following the comments, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala said that Singh and the Congress gave a “clean chit” to Pakistan, adding that the former CM had also questioned the surgical strike.
“On a day when India pays tribute to martyrs of Pulwama Digvijaya Singh & INC gives a clean chit to Pak, blame India! Digvijaya ji was recently questioning surgical strike! Not an individual statement but institutional approach of Congress to give cover fire to Pakistan!!” he tweeted.
Singh had earlier accused the BJP government at the Centre of “spreading lies” about the surgical strikes by the Indian Armed Forces against Pakistan in 2016.
“They (Centre) talk about surgical strikes and that they have killed so many of them but there is no proof. All they do is spread lies,” he had said, while addressing a public rally during the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra’s Jammu and Kashmir leg in Jammu.
Further, Madhya Pradesh minister of urban development and housing Bhuppendra Singh said in a tweet (in Hindi), “It has been the character of Congress to do politics on the sacrifice of brave soldiers. They were talking about the conspiracy of @RSSorg on the Mumbai terror attack. In the Bharat Yatra, along with Rahul Gandhi, he was demanding proof of surgical strike. Today the country is saluting the brave soldiers and busy in exposing their character.”
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, union Home minister Rajnath Singh, Defence minister Rajnath Singh, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar paid their homage to the CRPF personnel killed in the 2019 terror attack in Pulwama.