Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction) MP Supriya Sule on Monday strongly objected to the government’s claims of success regarding Operation Sindoor, stating that there is nothing to celebrate until the terrorists responsible for the Pahalgam attack, where 26 innocent tourists were killed, are identified and brought to justice.
Participating in the debate in Parliament on the first day of discussions on Operation Sindoor, Sule criticized BJP MP Tejasvi Surya's remarks where he claimed that former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru “never did anything for the defence forces” and credited the current government for taking such actions for the first time.
Sule responded sharply, saying, “he has not only insulted the armed forces but also the families who have made sacrifices so that you and I can be safe. I object to his statement. She added, he should read history. India has had decisive victories in wars even before this government came to power. I don’t know what kind of andhbhakts they are.” Sule added.
Recalling the all-party meeting held after the recent terror attack, Sule pointed out that the Congress was the first to support the government, stating that it was not a time for political blame games but for national unity.
She directly questioned External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar during the session, asking, "what was the objective of this war?"
Referring to past terror incidents, Sule said, "When the 26/11 Mumbai attacks happened during the UPA government, we did not politicize the situation. Constable Tukaram Omble sacrificed his life to capture Ajmal Kasab. The Congress never took credit for it. It was the police who did their job, and later, we executed Kasab. The BJP supported it too."
She also brought up the rising frequency of attacks in Poonch, Uri, Pulwama, and most recently Pahalgam. "In the latest Pahalgam attack, 16 civilians were killed. We must remember them too," she said.
Sharing a personal account, Sule recalled her conversation with Asavari Jagdale, daughter of one of the Pahalgam victims. Asavari keeps asking me, ‘When will my father get justice? When will those who killed him be punished?’
Sule raised concerns about the lack of clarity surrounding the attackers. "Who were these terrorists? We don’t know anything—how they came, how they escaped. No information has been made public," she said.
Criticizing the silence on incidents of communal targeting, she referred to statements made by a BJP MLA from Madhya Pradesh about Colonel Sofia Qureshi, the online trolling of diplomat Vikram Misri’s daughter, and physical assaults on students from Jammu and Kashmir. "How can such incidents keep happening? We still have faith that Home Minister Amit Shah will ensure justice," she said.
In conclusion, Sule asserted that Operation Sindoor is not complete and cannot be called a success until those terrorists are found. "We cannot celebrate prematurely." She urged the government to submit a detailed report on the operation, similar to what former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had done after the Kargil War.
