The Indian political landscape is once again fiercely debating national security credentials, with the Congress party asserting six surgical strikes occurred during its UPA government tenure, drawing sharp denials and accusations of falsehoods from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The controversy reignited following remarks by senior Congress MP Shashi Tharoor. Tharoor had stated that India’s first surgical strike happened in 2016 (under the BJP-led NDA government) in response to a terror attack. This comment sparked significant criticism, even from within his own party.
Congress Corrects Tharoor, Lists Six surgical strikes
While senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala offered support to the “seasoned and experienced” Tharoor, he simultaneously insisted Tharoor was mistaken regarding the timeline of surgical strikes. Surjewala declared the party needed to “correct” the record, asserting that cross-border military actions targeting Pakistan and “other dens of terrorists” were a “regular feature” during the Congress-led UPA governments (2004-2014).
To bolster this claim, the Congress party took to social media platform X, sharing a video titled “No Noida. No PR. Only Decisive Actions.” The accompanying post explicitly stated: “6 Surgical Strikes were carried out under Congress Govt.” The party listed specific operations:
- Poonch’s Bhattal sector (June 19, 2008)
- Sharda Sector across Neelam River Valley, Kel (August 31 – September 1, 2011)
- Sawan Patra Checkpost (January 6, 2013)
- Nazapir sector (July 27-28, 2013)
- Neelam Ghati (August 6, 2013)
- Neelam Ghati (January 14, 2014)
This list echoed similar claims made by former Congress President Rahul Gandhi back in December 2018, where he asserted three such surgical strikes during the UPA era.
BJP Hits Back: “Stop Lying!”
The BJP reacted swiftly and aggressively to the Congress’s assertions. Dismissing the claims as a “lie,” the party pointed to an official response received under the Right to Information (RTI) Act in April 2018. The BJP shared this on X, quoting the Directorate General of Military Operations (DGMO): “There were no surgical strikes under UPA as confirmed by the DGMO in response to an RTI query.”
Accusing the Congress of dishonesty even on matters of national security, the BJP’s post bluntly stated: “Darpok (fearful) Congress must STOP LYING.” They further criticized the grand old party for being “corrupt” in its approach to security matters.
Read More Beyond the Headlines: Shashi Tharoor’s Strike Remarks Ignite Internal Congress Debate
The Core Contradiction: Official Records vs. Political Claims
The dispute hinges on the definition and official record of “surgical strikes.” While Congress leaders like former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (who in May 2019 claimed “multiple surgical strikes” occurred under his watch but weren’t used for “vote gathering”) and Surjewala point to specific cross-border actions, the Indian Army’s official position, as stated by the DGMO via RTI and by senior commanders, contradicts this.
Lt General Ranbir Singh (Retd), who was heading the DGMO during the widely publicized September 2016 strikes following the Uri attack, stated clearly that those 2016 operations were “the first such operation” of their kind to be conducted. The DGMO’s RTI reply explicitly stated the Army had “no data” to suggest any surgical strikes were conducted across the Line of Control (LoC) before September 2016.
A Political Firestorm Engulfing National Security
This back-and-forth highlights how military actions become potent political ammunition. The BJP heavily publicized the 2016 strikes as a demonstration of decisive leadership. The Congress’s current assertion of six prior strikes under UPA appears aimed at reclaiming the national security narrative and countering the BJP’s dominance on this issue.
However, the official military record, as cited by the BJP via the DGMO’s RTI response, stands in direct opposition to the Congress’s claims of six previous surgical strikes. This fundamental contradiction ensures the controversy surrounding Shashi Tharoor’s initial comment and the subsequent claims and counter-claims about cross-border operations will continue to fuel political sparring, leaving the public to navigate conflicting narratives on a sensitive matter of national security.
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