The principal opposition party in the country, the Congress, on Wednesday offered its constructive cooperation to the central government at the time of crisis gripping the nation following the dastardly terrorist attack.
”The Congress party is with the government in this time of crisis when terrorists have launched an attack against the nation and will cooperate with the government to the fullest,” said AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, addressing a press conference in Bengaluru.
In the dastardly attack, unsuspecting, innocent civilians — tourists – were killed by terrorists in Pahalgam yesterday at around 230 p.m. ”It has deeply hurt, shocked, and saddened us all,” Kharge said.
“The Congress party unequivocally condemns this cowardly act of terror and those responsible for it in the strongest possible terms. This attack is a direct assault on the unity and integrity of our nation since the horrific Chittsinghpora massacre in 2000, This is among the most brazen and outrageous attacks by terrorists and separatists. We firmly reiterate that those who murdered unarmed and innocent civilians can not be human,” Kharge said in his opening statement.
“Late last evening, I spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, he was in Kashmir and also spoke to Omar Abdullah, CM of Jammu and Kashmir, and local leaders like Pradesh Committee Congress president and LoP of our party. I gathered much information, but it is not necessary to tell all that at this stage. I condemn this cowardly act done by terrorists and whoever is there Amit Shah told me that they will take action drastically in that area. The Congress Working Committee will meet tomorrow at 11 am in the AICC office in Delhi to discuss the emerging situation,” the Congress president said.
“In this moment, we are one with the government, and together we will have to fight such incidents and terrorists. Whether it is terrorists or other agencies, we will be together to fight for and save the country,” Kharge said.
Condemning the terrorist killings of innocent people in no uncertain terms, Kharge assured the government that the Congress will cooperate with the government and asserted that it was not the time for politicking on the issue. Congress will offer every constructive suggestion to solve the problem, rather than pick holes in the facts, but suggest a way forward.
The summer season is the season for Kashmiris to earn from tourism, but after this unfortunate incident, tourism will get affected, Kharge said, but added, “We will definitely cooperate with the government of India,” Kharge promised.
“We urge the government to use all its strength to hunt down the terrorists. It has been almost 22 hours now, the government must do everything possible to maintain tourists’ confidence in safety in Jammu and Kashmir. Amarnath Yatra is also fast approaching, it is only a few days. Therefore, such incidents have also taken place in the Amarnath Yatra in the past, so the central and state governments should also take precautions and must ensure protection to Amarnath pilgrims and security must be tightened,” Kharge said.
“We also expect the government to hold discussions with all political parties to address the challenge of terrorism in the spirit of consensus,” Kharge said.
Answering a question on whether the situation was the result of intelligence failure or faulty governance, the Congress leader, flanked by Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and AICC spokesperson Pawan Khera, maintained a dignified stance and said that “This is not the time for asking such questions. The priority and focus at this stage should be on helping the people in distress, and this is what the Congress was doing.”
“I don’t want to comment on all the facts and pick holes in the government’s actions. These questions can be asked at the all-party meeting, if the government calls for it,” the AICC president said in response to a question if there was an intelligence failure or if there was a sense of complacency that led to the terror attack.