New Delhi: Accusing the Modi government of “misleading” the nation, the Congress Saturday demanded a “comprehensive review” of India’s defence preparedness by an independent panel along the lines of the Kargil review committee after Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Anil Chauhan admitted to loss of fighter jets during Operation Sindoor.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also demanded that a special session of Parliament be immediately convened as “140 crore patriotic Indians” deserve to know answers to some “very important questions”.
The party said it was “extraordinary” that such a revelation had come from the CDS’s interview in Singapore instead of the government telling the Opposition.
Kharge also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alluding to his remarks on Operation Sindoor at various public rallies over the past week. He alleged that Modi was on an election blitz, taking personal credit for the valour of the armed forces and “hiding behind their bravery”.
In the wake of the remarks made by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in Singapore in an interview, there are some very important questions which need to be asked.
These can only be asked if a Special Session of the Parliament is immediately convened.
The Modi Govt has misled the…
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) May 31, 2025
On Saturday, Gen Chauhan in an interview to Bloomberg TV admitted to loss of Indian Air Force (IAF) assets during Operation Sindoor, but added “what is important is not jet being down but why”. He also said that the “good part is that we are able to understand the tactical mistake which we made, remedy it, rectify it, and then implement it again…”
In a separate interview to Reuters, he said, “What I can say is that on the 7th [May], in the initial stages, there were losses but numbers, that is not important. What was important is why these losses occur and what we will do after that.”
Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi has also been asking the government to come clean on the number of fighter jets India lost during the operation. Leaders of the ruling BJP had so far responded by accusing Gandhi of speaking the language of Pakistan.
There was no immediate reaction from the BJP on Gen Chauhan’s remarks in interviews to Bloomberg TV and Reuters in Singapore.
“In the wake of the remarks made by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in Singapore in an interview, there are some very important questions which need to be asked. These can only be asked if a Special Session of the Parliament is immediately convened. The Modi Govt has misled the nation. The fog of war is now clearing,” Kharge wrote on X.
He added, “Our IAF pilots were risking their lives fighting the enemy. We have suffered some losses, but our pilots were safe,” he added.
The Congress chief also demanded the government’s clarification on US President Donald Trump and his administration’s repeated assertions that Washington played a key role in brokering a truce between India and Pakistan during the conflict. Kharge said that Trump’s claim was a direct affront to the 1972 Simla agreement that precludes the involvement of any third-party mediation in disputes between the two neighbours.
“Is India and Pakistan now again hyphenated? What are the conditions of the CEASEFIRE agreement? 140 Cr Patriotic Indians deserve to know this,” Kharge added.
Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh also underlined the need to set up a committee along the lines of the one set up after the 1999 Kargil war under the chairmanship of K. Subrahmanyam, the late father of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
On July 29, 1999, the Vajpayee Govt set up the Kargil Review Committee under the chairmanship of India's strategic affairs guru K. Subrahmanyam – whose son is now our External Affairs Minister. This was just three days after the Kargil War had ended.
This Committee submitted its… pic.twitter.com/RzekP29q7j
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) May 31, 2025
“On July 29, 1999, the Vajpayee Govt set up the Kargil Review Committee under the chairmanship of India’s strategic affairs guru K. Subrahmanyam—whose son is now our External Affairs Minister. This was just three days after the Kargil War had ended. This Committee submitted its detailed report five months later. The report titled ‘From Surprise to Reckoning’ was then laid on the Table of both Houses of Parliament on Feb 23, 2000 after the necessary redactions,” Ramesh wrote on X.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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Independent review of the nations secrets. By which authority? Who ensures information does not leak? With the track record of past prime ministers and vice presidents we have no respect for security of the nation. Congress leaders will go to the global community with the nations secrets just to retain power. Internationalization in the name morality is a uniquely Congress induced legacy. Morarji Desai often dangled by Congress as a non Congress example came from the same pool. Gujral and now Rahul Gandhi. They put self above else. Party above nation and will ruin the country.
Mr. Mallikarjun Kharge’s only achievement in life is that he is the king of all sycophants. The Congress, very unfortunately, has veen reduced to a group of sycophants trying to outdo each other in their efforts to fawn and drool over their “leader” Rahul Gandhi. In this sea of sycophants, to emerge as the undisputed king is no mean feat. His skills at sycophancy and bootlicking have been his primary assets all through his political life.