Shah must take responsibility for ‘security lapse’ at Pahalgam: Kharge in RS

During a special discussion on Operation Sindoor, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday said Home Minister Amit Shah must take responsibility for the “security lapse” that led to the Pahalgam terror attack.

He was citing Jammu and Kashmir LG Manoj Sinha remarks.

“On July 14, Sinha accepted that the Pahalgam attack was undoubtedly a security failure,” Kharge said.

Citing terror attacks in Uri, Pulwama, Pathankot and Pahalgam, Kharge said, “It is clear from all these incidents that there have been repeated lapses in the country’s security. The Home Minister is responsible for these incidents, accountability must be fixed and he should resign from his position.”

Kharge also attacked the government pointing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unscheduled visit to Pakistan in 2015. He said the PM was campaigning after the attack instead of reviewing national security.

“On April 24, the government had called an all-party meeting. The entire opposition was present at the meeting, but PM Modi did not attend. As soon as he returned from Saudi Arabia, he went to hold a rally in Bihar. Is this the seriousness of the PM towards national security?” he asked.

Continuing his attack on the Centre during the debate on Operation Sindoor, Kharge said the BJP has set “factories of lies”.

“There is not one Public Sector Unit that you have set up. You have only set up factories of lies. You talk about HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and other PSUs that we have created,” Kharge said.

The Congress president said the Home Minister visited Jammu and Kashmir on April 7 and 8 and added that the terror ecosystem had been crippled under their regime.

“If it was crippled, how was the Pahalgam attack carried out?” he said.

Kharge said Shah has said three terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack have been killed. “But what about the others? Where are they hiding? Why haven’t you been able to find them?” he asked.

Kharge also brought up the online trolling faced by Himanshi Narwal, wife of Naval officer Lt Vinay Narwal who was killed in the Pahalgam terrorist attack and foreign secretary Vikram Misri. “What actions did the BJP government take against these trolls?” he questioned.

The Upper House witnessed heated exchanges between the Opposition and treasury benches after Leader of the House JP Nadda made objectionable remarks against Kharge that he later withdrew and apologised.

After Kharge spoke for over an hour during the discussion on Operation Sindoor and the Pahalgam attack, Nadda accused him of “losing his mental balance” as he made some remarks against PM Modi.

Amid uproar by the opposition, Nadda got up to say that he had already “taken back” his words, while adding that if they hurt Kharge’s feelings, he would apologise for the same.

“We respect the LoP. I withdrew my words. I apologise if you are hurt. But you, too, were led by emotions. You went so astray that you were not mindful of even the dignity of the PM, that is sad,” he said.