“Pakistan Turned To Proxy Warfare”: Modi Talks About PoK, Pakistan And Operation Sindoor At Gathering In Gandhinagar

Gandhinagar: Following a roadshow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated development projects worth Rs 5,536 crore and addressed a gathering at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar on Tuesday. Sharing his experiences from the past two days in Gujarat, the Prime Minister said, “I have been in Gujarat for the past two days, yesterday I visited Vadodara, Dahod, Bhuj, Ahmedabad and this morning, Gandhinagar. Everywhere I went, it felt like a wave of patriotism, like the roaring sound of a saffron sea. The roar of the saffron sea, the fluttering Tricolour and immense love for the motherland in every heart. It was a sight to behold.”

Taking a jibe at Pakistan, he said, “No matter how healthy the body is, if even a single thorn pricks it, the whole body remains troubled. Now, we have decided that we will remove that thorn.”

During his speech, PM Modi remarked that had India responded differently in 1947 to the entry of Mujahideens in Kashmir, the present circumstances might have been avoided. “In 1947, when Maa Bharti was partitioned, ‘katni chahiye thi zanjeerein par kaat di gayi bhujayein’. The country was divided into three parts. On that very night, the first terrorist attack took place in Kashmir. A part of Maa Bharti was captured by Pakistan using terrorists in the name of Mujahideen. If on that day, these Mujahideen were killed, and Sardar Patel’s wish was that until we get PoK, our armed forces should not stop. But no one listened to him and now we have been facing this (terrorism) for the last 75 years. Pahalgam was also an example of it. When we had wars with Pakistan, we defeated Pakistan thrice…” he stated.

Further criticizing Pakistan, PM Modi said recent developments had made it clear that terrorism is not a proxy war anymore. He said militants who died after May 6 were honored with state funerals in Pakistan.

“Pakistan’s flags were placed on their coffins, and their army saluted them. It proves that terrorist activities are not a proxy war but a well-planned war strategy. You are already at war, and you will receive the response accordingly. We do not seek enmity with anyone. We want to live peacefully. We also want to progress so that we can contribute to the welfare of the world,” he said.

Speaking on cross-border terrorism, Modi accused Pakistan of treating terrorism as a war strategy and criticized the Indus Water Treaty, saying it was poorly negotiated and even restricted dam de-silting in Kashmir.

Reflecting on his tenure, the Prime Minister recalled his first oath ceremony and India’s economic rise. “On 26th May 2014, I took the oath as the Prime Minister for the first time. At that time, India’s economy was at the 11th position…Today, India has become the world’s fourth-largest economy. It is a matter of pride for all of us that we have now surpassed Japan…I still remember the excitement across the country when we moved from sixth to fifth place, especially among the youth. The reason was that India had overtaken the United Kingdom, the very nation that ruled over us for 250 years…”