Nothing wrong with Cong demand for proof of Balakot air strikes: Amarinder Singh

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said Friday that there was "nothing wrong" in seeking proof of the Balakot air strikes as demanded by the Congress from the central government.

"If the strikes were as successful as the Modi government claimed them to be, it was actually a matter of immense pride for our country and for all of us. So let us see how our forces destroyed Pakistan buildings and shattered their inflated ego," the chief minister told a TV channel.

He was asked to comment on BJP's allegation that the Congress was being anti-nationalist by asking proof of the operation, according to a party release here.

"This is not the first time proof had been asked. Even in the 1965 war, an Army major brought chopped ears of those killed on the other side of the border to put all doubts of a certain Indian operation at rest," the chief minister said.

Photographs were released of the Kargil operation too, Singh said, adding that demanding proof from the government was not unpatriotic by any standard.

"I am very proud that our aging MIG 21 plane brought down a Pak F-16 and would be delighted to know about the success of our Air Force in Balakot," he said.

Singh has been continuously accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of taking credit for the actions of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and seek votes in the names of martyred soldiers.

"Have they (BJP) forgotten who won India its wars against Pakistan in 1965 and 1971? I am a military historian also and if Modi does not want to give the proofs of the strikes to the press or the Congress, he can send them to me," the Congress leader said.

In any case, Singh said, it was the BJP that started the number game by going overboard to "usurp" the accomplishment of the air force by claiming "hundreds" of casualties in Balakot.

The Congress only countered with its demand for proof, he said, adding that the BJP should not hesitate in grabbing the opportunity to show the world, and all doubt-mongers, great success of the Indian forces.

Singh also denied BJP's allegations of 'tukda tukda gang' against the Congress, saying it was the saffron party and its leaders who were making 'tukdas' (pieces) of the nation with their "divisive politics" and "nefarious agenda" to create bad blood among the people on account of caste, religion, etc.

Following the Pulwama terror attack that claimed the lives of 40 CRPF jawans, Indian Air Force fighter jets bombed terror group JeM's training camp near Balakot in Pakistan on February 26.