Mumbai: Opposition leaders voiced their concerns against the BJP government at the centre for its failure to prevent terrorist attacks in the wake of the deaths of five Indian Army soldiers by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch, while Shiv Sena (UBT)'s MP, Sanjay Raut, went on to compare the attack to the 2019 Pulwama attack.
The assailants, believed to be associated with the People's Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), targeted two Army vehicles on Thursday afternoon. The ambush occurred at a blind curve near Dhatyar Morh as the soldiers were en route to support a cordon-and-search operation.
Sanjay Raut, drawing parallels with the 2019 Pulwama attack, criticized the central government for what he perceives as a lapse in security. He questioned the government's commitment to addressing terrorism and raised concerns about the politicization of such grave incidents.
"Yesterday's terrorist attack in Poonch is a repeat of the Pulwama attack. The government is sleeping. Do you (BJP) again want to do politics on the sacrifice by our jawans? Do you want to seek votes again on the Pulwama issue in 2024? If we ask questions about the Poonch incident, then they will throw us out of Delhi or the country," said Raut.
National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah pointed to the persistence of terrorism despite the abrogation of Article 370, highlighting the ongoing challenges in the region. Former chief ministers Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mehbooba Mufti also expressed condemnation, emphasizing the need for a robust response to ensure the safety of military personnel.
The attack comes in the aftermath of a similar encounter in the Rajouri district last month, where five Army personnel, including two captains, lost their lives. The security forces have responded swiftly, launching a massive search operation in the region. Aerial surveillance and sniffer dogs have been deployed to track down the perpetrators responsible for this heinous act.