Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday slammed former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi over his ‘election stunt’ remarks on the terrorist attack on the Indian Air Force (IAF) convoy at Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir.

Channi said on Sunday that the Poonch militant attack, in which an IAF corporal was killed and four personnel were injured, was an “election stunt” to benefit the BJP. His remarks drew outrage from the BJP, which accused Congress of being disrespectful to soldiers and demanded an apology to the nation.

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Addressing an intellectual meet in Lucknow, Singh said,” A former Chief Minister of Punjab called a terror attack on Air Force personnel an election stunt as it happened during the election. We have such people in our country.”

He further said that the BJP has cleaned up terrorism in the country. “There might still be a few terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir. Before the BJP government, there were terror attacks in most of the states,” he said.

Recalling the Mumbai attack in 2008, Singh said after the attack that the then Home Minister said that these kinds of small terror attacks keep happening.
“In 2008, when I was the party president, the Mumbai attack happened and several people lost their lives. The then home minister said such small terror attacks keep happening,” he said.

“If someone tries to carry out any nefarious act, India can eliminate them on this side of the border, and if necessary, on the other side as well. We are no longer buying defence equipment from other countries. We have made ourselves self-reliant in the defence sector,” Singh added.

He further said that the BJP does politics for nation-building. “We want to develop a prosperous Bharat that is not only financially capable but could also lead in the fields of knowledge, spirituality and science,” Singh said.
He said that India, which ranked 11th in the GDP rankings, is currently the 5th largest economy in the world, adding that in the coming years, the country will become the third largest economy.

“India’s economy was in 11th position from 2004 till 2014. After this, PM Modi took over the charge and under his leadership, within eight years, India’s economy jumped from 11th position to fifth position. And there is a prediction that India will be among the top three economies in the world if it continues at the same pace,” the Defence Minister said.
Assuring people that Indian borders are completely safe and secure, Singh said, “I request to opposition parties say whatever they want to say but stop questioning the valour and bravery of Indian soldiers. On the issue of national security and border security, all political parties, despite their political differences, should stand together, irrespective of who is in power.”