BJP deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gopinath Munde was on Thursday charged with disrespecting the martyrdom of five soldiers killed along the Line of Control. Mr. Munde, who attended the funeral in Kolhapur district on Thursday of Kundalik Mane of 14 Maratha Light Infantry, one of the soldiers killed, said the soldiers were killed by terrorists. Nationalist Congress Party spokesman Nawab Malik, taking umbrage at the remarks, said: “The soldiers were killed by Pakistan’s army. The BJP leader, by calling the attackers as terrorists, has disrespected the martyrs.” He demanded that Mr. Munde apologise for “wrongly stating facts.” Mr. Munde, however, denied the charge. “I said Pakistani army and terrorists attacked our soldiers several times. No one should misinterpret my statement,” he said.
