Caught on the back foot after a newspaper reported his statement on >the Pakistani boat incident, B.K. Loshali, Deputy Inspector General of the Coast Guard, Gandhinagar, told The Hindu that he was “quoted out of context.”
According to the news report, Mr. Loshali is reportedly told a gathering of guests on the occasion of the launch of Coast Guard ICGS C-421 in Surat, “Let me tell you, I hope you remember December 31 night…we blew off that Pakistan…We have blown them off…I was there at Gandhinagar and I told at night, blow the boat off. We don’t want to serve them biryani…” The paper said his comments were recorded.
However, when reached for a clarification, Mr. Loshali went on the defensive. “My remarks are out of context. They have been blown out of proportion. I did not make that statement. I said that national security is our prime concern and during an international event like this we will not treat them as guest and serve biryani.”
He denied when asked specifically if he had ordered the blowing of the Pakistani boat. “I did not order it. The operation was handled by my boss [Coast Guard Inspector-General (IG) Kuldip Singh Sheoran, Commander, Coast Guard Region (North-West)].”
Mr. Loshali’s remarks contradict the Centre’s position on the operation in which a Pakistani boat was intercepted by the ICG off the Gujarat Coast. The government claimed that it was carrying explosives and blew itself up.
Mr. Sheoran told The Hindu that Mr. Loshali’s comments were “100 per cent misquoted.”
“Speaking about anti-national elements, he only made a remark whether we should serve them biryani. There is nothing factual in the report,” he told The Hindu .
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