A day after firing from Pakistani troops killed four Indian Army personnel along the Line of Control (LoC), the Congress said the NDA government must answer for the repeated border transgressions.
“This year alone, from January 1 to December 24, there have been 900 major attempts of infiltration from across the border,”said Congress leader Manish Tewari at a briefing on Sunday.
Of these 900 attempts by Pakistan, Mr. Tewari said, 780 were reported along the LoC and 120 along the International Border.
Pakistani troops fired on an Indian Army patrol on Saturday killing a Major and three soldiers in the Keri sector of Rajouri district.
Failed promises
Using a Hindi idiom, Mr. Tewari said, “Mr. Prime Minister before assuming office, you had said that Pakistan will not be able to kill a bird. What happened to those assurances? What happened to that commitment?”
“There were 583 major ceasefire violations between June and December 2014, 400 violations in 2015, 450 in 2016 and 900 this year. The Prime Minister points a finger at others, accuses people who have occupied top posts of committing treason but this government seems incapable of protecting our borders,” the former UPA Minister said.
During the Gujarat Assembly poll campaign, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had alleged that Pakistan was trying to influence the election, and cited the example of Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar hosting the former Pakistani Foreign Minister Khursid Mahmud Kasuri for a dinner attended by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The Congress has been insisting on an apology from Mr. Modi for making the accusation against Dr. Singh.
Mr. Tewari alleged that the Modi government doesn’t have any coherent policy towards Pakistan except “U-turns, flip-flops and somersaults”.
Lahore visit
“Today is December 24 and exactly two years ago, the Prime Minister had visited Lahore in Pakistan. But it is still not shared with the country what had India gained from the visit,” said Mr. Tewari.
He said India’s foreign policy with regard to her neighbours was in a shambles, and several of them, including the newly elected government in Nepal, were getting close to China.
“In Sri Lanka, growing Chinese influence is a matter of concern. The Maldives has signed an FTA [Free Trade Agreement] with China disregarding India’s position. China has constructed permanent structures in Doklam,” the Congress leader added.
