Uri attack:: Pressure mounts on govt as allies, opposition rain fire

The ruling BJP’s central leadership on Monday struck a cautious note on the terror attack at an army base in Uri as it was heckled by its more radical cadre as well as allies like the Shiv Sena.

The Opposition, at the same time, made sarcastic enquiries about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “muscular” policy vis-à-vis Pakistan and underlined the “inconsistencies” in India’s present Pakistan policy.

A day after the attack, when BJP General Secretary and former RSS spokesperson Ram Madhav made a hawkish reference to a “jaw-for-a-tooth” and called for an end to “so called strategic restraint”, the ruling party’s response to the terror attack was much more muted.

While former Army chief and Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh advocated action without the “influence of emotions and anger”, BJP leader Sidharth Nath Singh said it is up to the government to formulate a proper response.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar reportedly briefed party spokespersons and instructed them to take cue from the PM’s statement when speaking to the press. He also informed them that out of 12 attempts at attack, 10 had been foiled by the forces, with Pathankot and Uri being the exceptions.

Although the BJP leader condemned Pakistan, the party’s characteristic “tit-for-tat” rhetoric was missing.

“This government has tried to engage with Pakistan peacefully. But they have shut all windows for a peaceful engagement. They have made it clear that they do not want peace with India.

“The government will decide on retaliation. We have managed to isolate Pakistan on various international fora and are serious on terror. In any case, when serious action is taken, there is hardly any need to broadcast it,” Singh said at the BJP headquarters here. However, IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad took a firm stand and said: “Our relationship with Pakistan will not be the same again. Our patience is running out; there is a limit to patience. The government will consider strategic and diplomatic options and take a decision.”

But the ruling party seemed to have been pushed against a rock and a hard place. Its ally Shiv Sena declared that India’s position vis-à-vis Pakistan was better during the Congress’s tenure than under Modi.

“One has to accept that the situation today is worse than what it was during the Congress regime. At a time when pro-Pakistan sloganeering is on in Jammu and Kashmir, and Pakistani flags are being hoisted there, the Centre should dissolve the state government and impose martial law as President’s Rule alone will not suffice,” said an editorial in the Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamna.

The Congress, at the same time, reminded the Prime Minister of his own high-decibel anti-Pakistan rhetoric during the ten years of UPA’s tenure.

“I will read from a few tweets from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi said on May 4, 2009 at 3:35 pm – ‘I wish to ask Prime Minister, are you not weak? If indeed you are a strong government, the country needs proof of that’. Then I will read out one from August 6, 2013 at 10:58 am – ‘From china’s intrusions to Pakistan’s ambushes, UPA government has absolutely lax in securing India’s borders’. This is the present PM mocking the UPA from 2004 to 2014,” said Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari, while underlining the “absolutely irresponsible” attitude of the BJP, especially the current PM, while the Congress dealt with Pakistan and terrorism.

While asserting that the Congress will support the government in “whatever action they plan to take at a time like this”, Tewari demanded to know whether the “pendulum-like shifts” in the BJP’s Pakistan policy have undermined India’s strategic response.

“The unfortunate reality is that this government neither has any strategic sense nor any tactical understanding. Their definition of policy is unfortunately limited only to headline management… We in the Congress will, of course, stand by the government in what they plan to do. However, what we want to ask the PM is – Can you assure the Nation that after today, there will be no such terror attacks? Does your government have a policy towards Pakistan? Beyond the Jumlas and the rhetoric, can the Nation now expect a serious answer on a critical question,” said Tewari.