Kolkata: The Congress on Saturday alleged that the country’s defence preparedness was at an “all-time low” under the Narendra Modi government and soldiers had become a “shield to play politics and hide failures”.
“For Modi, the soldiers have become a shield to play politics and hide his failures. The country saw 172 terror- related incidents in the last three years, which was unprecedented. As many as 578 jawans and 877 civilians were killed in terror attacks in the country in the last 35 months,” Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi told a press conference here.
“In Jammu and Kashmir alone, 203 jawans were killed in the last three years,” he added. Questioning the Prime Minister’s “silence” on the matter, Mr Singhvi asked him to come out with an answer. Referring to national security, he said, “Empty phrases, chest-thumping, acronyms and promises have taken the place of concrete deliverables on the ground. The Modi government is a complete failure as far as national security is concerned.”
Mr Singhvi also said that in 2014-15, the funds sanctioned by the defence ministry were “30 per cent less” than what was asked for and out of the funds sanctioned, Rs 12,000 crore had remained unspent. Taking a dig at Arun Jaitley, he said, “It has become a part- time holding of two important ministries.”
