Slamming the BJP government at the Centre for asking the Army to publicise its schemes, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of making a political capital out of the reputation of the armed forces ahead of the upcoming elections.
He said the BJP has “hurt” the dignity of the Indian Army.
The remarks of the Congress chief came a day after a report claimed that the ruling dispensation is making attempts to use the Army to publicise its schemes.
“By capitalising on the popularity of the brave soldiers of our Indian Army who protect the nation, Modi ji is promoting him. The Modi Government has asked the Army to set up 822 selfie points across the country to promote government schemes,” Kharge wrote in a social media post.
In an apparent reference to the forthcoming Assembly elections in Rajasthan, MP, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram and Telangana, the Congress chief took a swipe at the ruling dispensation, saying, “By politically using the Army in elections, the Modi government has done something which has never happened in last 75 years. BJP, which teaches the lesson of nationalism, has hurt the dignity of the Indian Army.”
“The Indian National Congress is extremely proud of the bravery and sacrifice of the Indian Army,” Kharge added.
Earlier on Monday, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh urged President Droupadi Murmu to look into the matter.
“After failure on all fronts during the past 9.5 years, the (Narendra) Modi government is now making an attempt to get its political publicity through the Army. We request President Draupadi Murmu ji, the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces, to intervene in this matter, and direct the government to immediately withdraw this wrong step,” he said.
The grand old party often accused the saffron party of using the name of the Army for political gains.