Opposition takes govt to task over Pak attacks

Opposition parties have condemned the attack on Indian soldiers and the mutilation of the bodies of two security personnel, while also reprimanding the Centre for what it called the absence of a security policy to counter such offensives from across the border.

“This government does not have a security policy. It has been clear from the actions in the last three years: they have fluctuated between an irrelevant Defence Minister to a part-time Defence Minister. They have only indulged in part-time statements about the serious and worsening situation on the ground,” said Congress spokesperson and former Union Minister Kapil Sibal.

Sibal said terrorist incidents in Jammu and Kashmir had risen in the last three years. “From August 2011 to May 2014, during the UPA tenure, civilian deaths were 50 and 103 soldiers died. During the last 35 months, civilian deaths have risen to 91 and 198 soldiers laid their lives,” he said. Sibal said ceasefire violations and Maoist attacks have also increased during the Narendra Modi government.

CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury condemned the attacks and said the security of the country’s borders and its people is the government’s responsibility. “We must ensure that we don’t give opportunities to our enemies to attack us. While we know that our Army will respond appropriately, we need to ask why the country doesn’t have a full-time Defence Minister?” he asked.

CPI’s national secretariat said Pakistan Army’s actions amounted to not only a violation of the border but also an inhuman activity. “This type of attacks will further deteriorate the relations between the two countries, which are already at a low ebb,” the party said.