Irani calls Sidhu modern India's Jaichand

Union minister Smriti Irani Wednesday hit out at Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, calling him modern India's Jaichand for "defending" Pakistan after the Pulwama attack.

"Such people will be taught a lesson by the people she added.

Jaichand had betrayed Prithviraj Chauhan in a battle against Muhammad Ghori in 1192.

"Those who call Pakistan PM their friend and try to defend Pakistan by claiming it had no role in the Pulwama attack are modern India's Jaichands, she said while replying to questions on Sidhu but didn't take his name.

Following the car bomb attack carried out by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) in Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir on February 14 that had killed forty CRPF personnel, the cricketer-turned-politician had said that an entire nation could not be blamed for the actions of "a handful of people".

Condemning the attack, Sidhu, who was among the invitees for the swearing-in ceremony of Imran Khan as Pakistan prime minister last year, however had posed, "For a handful of people, can you blame the entire nation and can you blame an individual?"
She said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given a free hand to the Indian army to deal sternly with terrorists and "we have full faith in our jawans who will avenge at appropriate time."