Rahul Gandhi Seeks Explanation After Trump Jets Remark, BJP Hits Back
US President Donald Trump's vague statement about five jets being downed during Operation Sindoor has led to a political face-off in India, with Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi calling for an explanation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP alleging that he has a "traitor's mentality".
In remarks made at a private dinner on Friday, Trump said five jets were shot down during Operation Sindoor, which was India's response to the Pahalgam terror attack in April, but did not specify whether the planes were Indian or Pakistani.
"In fact, planes were being shot out of the air. Five, five, four or five, but I think five jets were shot down actually," Trump said.
Operation Sindoor began with India striking terrorist infrastructure in nine locations in Pakistan, including the headquarters of the Jaish-e-Mohammed in Bahawalpur and Lashkar-e-Taiba in Muridke, and Islamabad began claiming soon after that it had shot down several Indian jets, including three Rafales, which are the most advanced fighters in the Indian Air Force.
India has said there were losses, but has not given an exact number, maintaining what was more important was why they had happened.
"What is important is that, not the jet being down, but why they were being down," India's Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan had said, categorically denying Pakistan's claim that six jets had been shot down.
"The good part is that we are able to understand the tactical mistake which we made, remedy it, rectify it, and then implement it again after two days and flew all our jets again, targeting at long range," General Chauhan had said.
Taking to Twitter on Saturday, Rahul Gandhi posted the video of Trump's remarks and wrote in Hindi, "Modi ji, what is the truth behind the five jets? The country has a right to know."
Hitting back, BJP leader Amit Malviya pointed out that Trump had not said which country the planes belong to and asked the Congress MP whether he was a spokesperson on Pakistan.
"Rahul Gandhi's mentality is that of a traitor. In his statement, Trump neither took the name of India nor said that those five planes belonged to India. Then why did the prince of Congress accept him as belonging to India? Why did he not accept him as belonging to Pakistan? Does he sympathise more with Pakistan than his own country?" Mr Malviya asked in a post on X in Hindi.
"The truth is that Pakistan has not yet recovered from Operation Sindoor... but Rahul Gandhi is in pain! Whenever the country's army teaches a lesson to the enemy, Congress gets irritated. Anti-India sentiment is no longer a habit of Congress, it has become its identity. Rahul Gandhi should make it clear - is he an Indian or a spokesperson of Pakistan?" he said.
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