The Congress on Friday criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his remarks on surgical strikes carried out during the UPA regime alleging that he insulted Indian Army.

In a statement issued on Friday, Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said that the PM’s “shameless utterances” at an election rally in Rajasthan’s Sikar was “nothing but a direct abuse to the indomitable courage and bravery of our brave jawans”.

He was referring to the PM’s jibe at the Congress’ claim of carrying out multiple surgical strikes during its reign.

“Tragically, Modi-ji has even faulted the statement of the then serving Army Chief, General Bikram Singh on the surgical strike dated 23 December 2013,” the statement read.

The Congress said the PM’s attack on the party “reflects political bankruptcy of a PM when faced with an imminent defeat in the 2019 elections”.

The party alleged that the PM crafts a “national security” narrative when he has “no answer on the issue of jobs, agrarian distress, black money and corruption”.

“To put it in the language of the BJP, questioning the bravery of our Army is nothing short of an anti-national act by Modi,” Congress said in the statement.

Earlier today, the PM had at a rally in Rajasthan targeted the Congress a day after the party claimed that as many as six surgical strikes had been carried out during the UPA regime.

“Only Congress can do surgical strikes on paper while sitting in AC rooms. First they claimed to have conducted 3 strikes. Yesterday they said they carried out six strikes. In a few days they will say that they carried out a strike daily,” the PM said.

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“What kind of strikes were they about which neither the terrorists nor those who attacked terrorists, neither those in Pakistan nor anyone in India came to know? Did you come across the word ‘strike’ anywhere in the media during the remote-control government?” the PM said at the massive gathering of BJP supporters in this part of the state.

On Thursday, the Congress claimed that the UPA government led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh carried out six surgical strikes between 2008 and 2014.

The party also revealed the dates and places of the surgical strikes undertaken during the Congress-led UPA rule.

In an interview to The Hindustan Times, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stressed that “multiple surgical strikes took place” during the UPA reign and that “forces received a free hand to respond to external threats”.

The Congress had earlier, too, claimed to have carried out surgical strikes. In June 2018, Congress leader Randeep Surjewala had given out the same dates and places of surgical strikes at a press conference held after the release of a video of the 2016 surgical strikes.