JP Nadda slammed the UPA government for its inaction during the 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai (File)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national President JP Nadda on Friday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given "Mazboot Sarkaar" (strong government) while there was "Majboor Sarkaar" (weak government) during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime.
While interacting with ex-servicemen in Imphal, Mr Nadda slammed the UPA government for its inaction during the 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai that claimed the lives of more than 100 civilians and other security personnel.
Referring to Congress leader Manish Tewari's new book, Mr Nadda said, "The Congress leader in his book has said that not responding to the terror attacks was the "insensitiveness of the UPA government". The Indian Army was ready but the government did not take a stand. This is living proof of "Majboor Sarkaar". We must understand where the strong leadership of Modi ji has led us today and where UPA leadership had taken us. PM Modi has given "Mazboot Sarkaar" while there was "Majboor Sarkaar" during the UPA regime," said JP Nadda.
"On one side, PM Modi reacts with surgical strikes and airstrikes, showing India's strength. One the other, there was no reaction after 26/11 under a weak UPA government," he added.
The BJP president further said that PM Modi has given the message that the country is safe only because of the soldiers who are standing on its borders.
"32 new border roads, 683 km long, are being built on Indo-China borders. 44 strategic bridges in sensitive areas are being developed. Daulet Beg Oldi road has been completed in 2019. It took 19 years, but work was done at full pace under PM Modi," he said.
He further said that a defence corridor is coming up in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh and the government is focusing on indigenous production in defence to further strengthen our forces.
"No purchase had taken place in the last 10 years before PM Modi came to power. Under PM Modi, 36 Rafale Fighters have been inducted into the Indian Air Force. 28 Apache helicopters and 15 Chinook choppers have been purchased. MRSAM and 100 artillery guns have been purchased. 1.86 lakh bulletproof jackets have been purchased. 5 lakh assault rifles have also been brought. These purchases have been done after 22 years. There were no defence deals without commission during the previous governments. Our defence forces had to suffer a lot due to this," he added.
Further hitting out the UPA government, Mr Nadda said that Rs Rs 42,000 crore was allotted for One Rank, One Pension (OROP).
"The demand for OROP was started in 1972 by the Army personnel. The outgoing UPA Govt showed you a Rs 500 token amount - a distasteful joke. After PM Modi came, Rs 42,000 crore was allotted for OROP and all arrears were also cleared," he added.
He further said that civilian casualties in the last six years have decreased by 79 per cent and casualties of the armed forces have gone down by 23 per cent.
In his latest book, Congress leader Manish Tewari has criticized the inactions of the then UPA government after the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai and said that India should have "actioned a kinetic response" to "a state that has no compunctions in brutally slaughtering hundreds of innocent people".
"Our actions should have spoken louder than our words", Mr Tewari says as per the excerpts of the book ''10 Flash Points; 20 Years - National Security Situations that Impacted India'' released by the Congress leader himself on his Twitter account.
"For a state that has no compunctions in brutally slaughtering hundreds of innocent people, restraint is not a sign of strength; it is perceived as a symbol of weakness. There comes a time when actions must speak louder than words. 26/11 was one such time when it just should have been done," excerpts from the book read.
"It, therefore, is my considered opinion that India should have actioned a kinetic response in the days following India's 9/11," it added.
Mumbai had come to a standstill on November 26, 2008, when 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who entered the city via sea route from Pakistan carried out a series of coordinated shootings and bombings that injured over 300 and claimed the lives of 166 people in India's financial capital.
The attacks took place at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station, Cama Hospital, Nariman House business and residential complex, Leopold Cafe, Taj Hotel and Tower and the Oberoi-Trident Hotel.