PM Modi on Kargil Vijay Diwas: Pakistan fomenting terror in J&K, learnt nothing from history
In Ladakh, Modi also spoke on Agnipath scheme and said it was an example of the necessary reforms done by the Army, and attacked the Opposition, without naming any political party
Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during a programme to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Kargil Vijay Diwas at the Kargil War Memorial, in Drass, Ladakh, Friday, July 26. PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday (July 26) accused Pakistan of continuing to sponsor “terrorism and proxy war” in Jammu and Kashmir, saying it has learnt nothing from history.
Speaking in Ladakh on the anniversary of the 1999 Kargil war, Modi also stoutly defended the abrogation of Article 370 of the constitution and the widely criticised Agnipath scheme introduced in the military.
Modi attacks Pakistan
"Pakistan has failed in all its nefarious attempts in the past. But Pakistan has not learned anything from its history. It is trying to keep itself relevant with the help of terrorism and proxy war,” he said on the occasion of Kargil Vijay Diwas.
“Today I am speaking from a place where the masters of terror can hear my voice directly, I want to tell these patrons of terrorism that their nefarious intentions will never succeed. Our soldiers will crush terrorism with full force and the enemy will be given a befitting reply,” he added. Modi’s remarks came amid a sudden resurgence of terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.
Defends axing Article 370
The prime minister said August 5 will mark the fifth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370, an action he insisted had unleashed a new future in Jammu and Kashmir and boosted its economic development.
“Along with infrastructure development, the tourism sector is also growing rapidly in Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir. After decades, a cinema hall has opened in Kashmir.
“After three and a half decades, Tazia procession has been taken out in Srinagar for the first time. Our heaven on earth is rapidly moving towards peace and harmony.”
Modi flays opposition
Modi said the Agnipath scheme was an example of the necessary reforms done by the Army. He then went on to attack the Opposition, without naming any political party.
“Some people used to think that the Army means saluting politicians, doing parades but for us the Army means the faith of 140 crore countrymen.
“The goal of Agnipath is to make the Army young, to keep the Army continuously fit for war. Unfortunately, some people have made such a sensitive issue related to national security a subject of politics.
Kargil Vijay Diwas
“These are the same people who weakened our Army by committing scams worth thousands of crores in the Army," Modi said.
“The history of those misleading the youth of the country shows that they do not care about the soldiers. These are the same people who lied about One Rank One Pension... These are the same people who did not build a war memorial... These are the same people who did not provide adequate bulletproof jackets to our soldiers deployed on the border.”
India and Pakistan fought a bitter war in the Kargil region in Kashmir in 1999 after Pakistani soldiers and militants took over key heights in the Kargil mountain range.