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Don't politicise army action against militants: Congress
New Delhi, June 10
The Congress on Wednesday
complimented the Indian Army for its operation against militants along
the India-Myanmar border, but said such matters should not be
politicised.
Party spokesperson Ajay Maken said there was a
difference between what Minister of State for External Affairs
Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore claimed and what the army has said.
"The
Indian Army has never said that it entered Myanmar. What we would like
to say is that such things should never be politicised," he said.
Maken
said there was an agreement between India and Myanmar in 2010 which
allows the Indian Army to enter Myanmar if it is required.
"So if
you talk about taking political credit, if you want to talk such
things, they do not happen in a day. The foundations are laid much
before," he said.
Maken said that on sensitive issues which has impact on external relations, "we should be very sensitive in taking credit".
Rathore
had tweeted on Tuesday: "Indian army strikes into the heart of
militants. Desh ke dushmano ko karara jawab. Kushal netritva, mazboot
sarkar PM@narendramodi #56inchRocks."
Maken said he was not sure whether Rathore had approval of higher-ups in the government about his tweet.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had used the term "56 inch chest" during the Lok Sabha election campaign.
India's offensive on eastern border message to terrorists'
India's offensive against
terrorists along its eastern border sends a message to them, the
government said on Wednesday, even as defence ministry denied that "hot
pursuit" was involved in the action.Questions were raised if
India would pursue a similar policy along its Western border with
Pakistan, inviting a sharp reaction from the other side.
The
operation conducted by the Indian Army on Tuesday involved two attacks
along the Indo-Myanmar border, with the camps being located in
Myanmarese territory.
Perceived as the largest cross-border
operation yet by the Army, the attack resulted in several militants
being killed with no loss of life on the Indian side.
Minister of
State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh denied any "hot pursuit" being
involved in the operation, while Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar
said it was a message to all terrorists.
"We did not use hot pursuit. We contacted Burma (Myanmar) authorities before the attack," Rao Inderjit said here.
Javadekar,
speaking in Mumbai, said: "The military's action against insurgents,
with assistance from the Myanmarese government, speaks volumes about
India's resolve to fight terror. This is a lesson and a message to all
the terror groups that India will not hesitate in going beyond its
geographical borders to eliminate terrorists."
Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, termed it a fitting reply.
"The ilitary operation against extremist hideouts in Myanmar is a fitting reply for the ambush of Army soldiers," Rijiju said.
"We
must salute the work the army did... When something is done in national
interest, we must support it and not discuss it in detail," he added.
The Congress, however, said government must not politicise the issue.
"Indian
Army has never said it has entered into Myanmar. What we would like to
say that such things should never be politicised", party spokesman Ajay
Maken told reporters.
A sharp reaction, meanwhile, came from
Pakistan, with Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar saying India should not
mistake the country for Myanmar.
"Pakistan Army is fully capable of responding to any adventurism," said Nisar.
Army sources meanwhile said more such operations may be carried out in future based on intelligence reports.
"More
such attacks may take place if there are intelligence inputs of a
threat (of the kind of attack on June 4 in Manipur that claimed the
lives of 18 Indian Army soldiers and injured many more). The forces are
always ready for such operations," a senior officer told IANS on
condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media.
Asked
if a similar approach could be used on the Western border, highly
placed officials said the situation on both sides is different.
"Defence
and security strategy is something that evolves after one thinks
through all the consequences of action or inaction; hence any premature
celebration over the Myanmar swatting of terror groups would not only be
wrong, but foolish," an official close to the security establishment
told IANS.
Former Army Chief Gen. V.P. Malik said India had the
capability, but such operation on the Western border along with Pakistan
may result in a small-scale war.
"We do have the capability (to
launch similar attack along India-Pakistan border) but it does not mean
we will react in that manner. It can escalate into a limited war, we
have to be prepared for all those things in term of public opinion and
international opinion," Gen. Malik said.
According to sources,
elements of 21 Para (SF) of the Parachute Regiment that carried out the
strike on Tuesday did not suffer any losses but caused "significant
casualties" among the terrorists.
Officially, the army has not
released figures for militants killed in the attack but these are
estimated to be between 15 and 25.
Sources said the camps that were attacked were a few kilometers inside Myanmar border, but refused to name the exact location.
The paratroopers were flown to the target in the indigenous Dhruv advanced light helicopters.