The Congress Party on Tuesday came down heavily on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after an encounter in the Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir resulted in the deaths of four army personnel, including a Major-rank officer, on late Monday night.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, took to the social media platform X to condemn the BJP for what he termed as "wrong policies" that, according to him, were responsible for the continuous loss of lives in the troubled region of Jammu and Kashmir.
Gandhi described the incidents as "sad and worrying," emphasizing the need for accountability.
“It is the demand of every patriotic Indian that the government should take full responsibility for the repeated security lapses and take strict action against the culprits who harm the country and the soldiers,” Gandhi wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
“These repeated terrorist attacks are revealing the poor condition of Jammu and Kashmir. Our soldiers and their families are bearing the brunt of BJP’s wrong policies,” he added.
The recent encounter in Doda comes just a week after a similar terrorist ambush in the remote Machedi forest belt of Kathua district in Jammu, which claimed the lives of five soldiers and injured several others. The spate of terror attacks in the Jammu division has prompted police and security forces to launch extensive joint combing and search operations. it has also led to renewed concern over militancy now entering into the Jammu region, which, historically was considered safer compared to the neighbouring Kashmir region.
Gandhi, however, wasn't the only one to issue condemnation. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge also expressed his condolences on X, and also criticizing the ruling Narendra Modi government for its perceived complacency.
“The Modi government is acting as if everything is ‘business as usual’ and nothing has changed,” Kharge wrote. He highlighted the increasing frequency of attacks in the Jammu region and urged the Centre to prioritize national security.
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh also took a strong stance, questioning Prime Minister Modi’s previously made assurances.
“While we must demonstrate an effective collective response cutting across political parties, the question must also be asked: what happened to all those grand claims made by the self-anointed non-biological PM and the self-styled Chanakya?” Ramesh remarked.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Congress General Secretary, also conveyed her condolences and extended her support to the families of the fallen soldiers.
According to PTI, Monday night’s encounter marked the third significant incident involving security forces and terrorists in the Doda district over the past three weeks. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s office confirmed that he has been in communication with the Chief of Army Staff and is being kept informed about the ongoing anti-terror operations in the area.