Bhadauria, former IAF Chief, joins BJP

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 24

Former Indian Air Force Chief RKS Bhadauria along with ex-bureaucrat and former MP Varaprasad Rao joined the BJP on Sunday. Bhadauria was the 23rd IAF Chief from September 30, 2019, to September 30, 2021.

Bhadauria had earlier termed the Balakot air strikes of February 26, 2019, as “the most significant air action by the IAF in four decades with fighters penetrating the Pakistan airspace, launching precise attacks and returning home safely”.

With the Balakot air strikes after the Pulwama terror attack, India ended the red line it had imposed on itself. Mirage 2000 fighters of the IAF conducted pre-dawn air strikes and bombed JeM targets in Balakot.

Speaking on his joining the BJP in the presence of party’s national general secretary Vinod Tawde and Union minister Anurag Thakur, Bhadauria said, “I am thankful to the BJP for this opportunity to contribute to nation building. I served the IAF for over 40 years. That was a great honour. The golden period of the forces was the last decade of my service. The bold decisions taken by PM Narendra Modi to strengthen the armed forces, make them self-reliant and modernise them have ensured that the Indian forces attain new capability and confidence, which is now visible in the field.”

“Phenomenal and visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and reforms being undertaken across various sectors are lending India a new direction. India is emerging as a strong nation under PM Modi,” he said.

Former IAS officer-turned-politician Varaprasad Rao from Tirupati also joined the BJP today, hailing PM Modi’s vision and noting that under the BJP, Tirupati had witnessed 100-time increase in its development in terms of road and rail network and smart city features.

“Tirupati’s development has improved a hundred times. A number of flyovers have come up. There are no traffic jams. Many new roads and trains have been introduced,” said Rao whose first political break was courtesy actor Chiranjeevi and his brother Pawan Kalyan.

Rao served in the governments of MG Ramachandran, J Jayalalithaa and K Karunanidhi. He took VRS and joined politics.

Inducting the duo into the BJP, Anurag Thakur said the joining of top professionals showed the trust that a prosperous, safe and developed India was possible only under PM Modi.

“Officers like Air Chief Marshal Bhadauria and Rao have dedicated years to national service and now come to our party that fulfilled the promise of ‘one rank, one pension’, struck peace resolutions in the North-East; abrogated Article 370 to enable development and harmony in Jammu and Kashmir and indigenised armed forces,” said Thakur.

He said India’s defence production had risen considerably. “We had Rs 1 lakh crore defence production, and Rs 16,000 crore exports. The country is safe under PM Modi that is why officers are returning to the task of nation building even after retirement,” Thakur added.

Earlier, former Army Chief VK Singh joined the BJP and is a two-term sitting MP from Ghaziabad.

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