New Delhi, Sep 29 : In a bitter attack on the Congress, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the partys "chhoti soch" (narrow mindedness) was stopping it from seeing any merit in celebrating the 2016 cross-LoC surgical strikes on terrorist launch pads.
"We all know the attitude of the Congress on surgical strikes. They keep raising questions over surgical strikes even today, opposing the government and opposing the nation's armed forces? Also doubting the armed forces' valour and courage?" he said while addressing the BJP workers in Rajasthan's Chittorgarh through video conferencing.
"In their bid to oppose the government, they began opposing the nation. This antagonism has become the character of the Congress party," he added.
Responding to a question by a BJP worker, Modi said that the opposition had even questioned the utility of the Pokhran-II nuclear tests and the Congress party did not even see any merit in observing the Kargil Vijay Diwas.
"The Congress does not observe the Kargil Vijay Diwas even today. One of their leaders said they could not see any reason to celebrate the Kargil victory as the war was fought on India's land, that this victory is meaningless. They said it was an NDA-era war and so NDA could celebrate it. Such narrow mindedness, lowly thinking," Modi said.
He also attacked Congress President Rahul Gandhi for meeting the Chinese Ambassador at the height of the 73-day Doklam stand-off with that nation last year.
"The Congress President, without taking anyone into confidence, met the Chinese ambassador during Doklam episode. If the Congress President wanted to know something on Doklam, he could have asked the External Affairs Minister. But, he was more interested in knowing the Chinese perspective," he said.
The government is observing the second anniversary of the surgical strikes -- conducted by the special forces on the intervening night of September 28-29 in 2016 -- as a three-day ‘Parakram Parv' at 53 locations in 51 cities across India.
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Washington (PTI): US President Donald Trump on Sunday said his “civilisation will die” remarks brought Iran to the bargaining table for the now failed peace talks, and predicted that they will come back.
“Let me tell you, that statement got them to the bargaining table, and they have it left. They have left the bargaining table. I predict they come back and they give us everything we want,” Trump told Fox News programme ‘Sunday Futures’.
On April 7, Trump had threatened that the US forces would wipe out the “whole civilisation” and demanded that Iran open up the Strait of Hormuz, the transit route for one-fifth of the global oil supplies, for navigation.
“A whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again,” Trump posted on Truth Social, remarks that drew condemnation from across the world.
On Sunday, Trump tried to justify his remarks, saying Iran has always been calling “death to America” every other day.
“When I say about a civilisation, it really has changed. It really has. But think of it: they're allowed to say, "Death to America, death to this, death to—" you know, I make one statement, they say, "Oh, such a big deal”," Trump told Fox News.
Vice President J D Vance-led US delegation held peace talks with the Iranian interlocutors in Islamabad on Saturday.
The US and Iran failed to reach a peace deal at their historic 21-hour talks in Pakistan, leaving the fate of a tenuous two-week ceasefire in doubt, with both sides attempting to hold each other responsible for the collapse of the negotiations.
Vance asserted that Iran was not ready to give up nuclear weapons.
The failure to reach an agreement has dimmed the prospect of reopening the Strait of Hormuz to stabilise the global energy market. It is unclear whether the US will resume military operations against Iran.
"I told my people, I want everything. I don't want 90 per cent, I don't want 95 per cent. I told them I want everything," Trump said about the peace talks with Iran.
"We didn't get there on the important issue. They want to have nuclear weapons. They're not going to have nuclear weapons," the US President said.
The conflict began after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28, paralysing global energy markets and disrupting trade.
