NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Monday said the government does not have any right to stay in power if it is taking a stand not to protect soldiers, the remark coming in view of "revelations" made by former Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik on the 2019 Pulwama attack.
Mr. Pawar was addressing a farmers' congregation at Purandar tehsil in Pune district of Maharashtra.
"Although many things have happened in the country, the fact of these incidents have not come to the fore. There is an area called Pulwama where 40 soldiers had been killed. The story behind this was brought forward by former Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik, a BJP appointee to the position.
"At that time (Pulwama attack), the necessary equipment and planes were not provided to soldiers, so they had to face death. When Malik told this to a very important person in the country, he was told not to talk about it,"Mr. Pawar said.
He said the responsibility of protecting soldiers of the country lies with the government, "and if the government is taking a stand not to protect soldiers, then we all have to take a stand that the government does not have the right to remain in power, and for that, the next elections are important".
Mr. Malik had made certain claims about the Pulwama terror attack in an interview to a news portal. Though the Centre has not reacted, the BJP has said there are serious questions about Malik's credibility and cited various statements made by him in recent years.
