New Flashpoint In BJP vs Opposition: Satyapal Malik's Remarks On Pulwama Attack

Former Jammu and Kashmir governor Satyapal Malik's comments about the 2019 Pulwama attack have triggered a political storm. During a recent interview, Mr Malik claimed that security lapses led to the Pulwama attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed. He also claimed that a request by the paramilitary force asking for an aircraft to commute was denied by the government, which in turn led to the jawans travelling by road.

In the interview with The Wire, Mr Malik also alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is "ill-informed" about the Jammu and Kashmir region.

Citing his past remarks where he had praised the government, the ruling BJP said that his "U-turns" raised questions about his credibility. BJP's I-T department head Amit Malviya shared several old clips of Mr Malik praising the government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"And before Congress minions get all excited about Satyapal Malik, their newfound knight in the shinning armour, here is what he had to say about Rahul Gandhi. So, sit down," Mr Malviya tweeted, sharing a video of Satyapal Malik where he had mocked Rahul Gandhi as a "political juvenile".

Besides calling Rahul Gandhi a "political juvenile", he is heard saying in the video that people will "beat him with shoes" during elections if they are told he (Gandhi) supports Article 370, which was nullified by the Modi government.

Mr Malviya, in another tweet, said, "No one took him (Satyapal Malik) seriously even when he made these allegations back then. But it raises serious questions on his credibility."

On the other hand, the Opposition is demanding information from the probe into the Pulwama incident.

The Congress party, repeating the allegations by Mr Malik, accused PM Modi of "suppressing" the incident to "save" his personal image ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh accused the BJP-led Union government of "minimum governance and maximum silence" and asked it to comment on the claims Mr Malik made on the incident.

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut said that the Opposition leaders who had raised questions on the Pulwama attack were "silenced by the ruling BJP and called traitors."

Samajwadi Party also demanded answers on the "incompetence" of the BJP government in preventing the Pulwama attack.

Over 40 soldiers were killed after a suicide bomber rammed his vehicle into the CRPF convoy On February 14, 2019. In a retaliatory attack, the Indian Air Force targeted terror camps in Balakot in Pakistan.