Poonch attack: Day after criticism over his ‘poll stunt’ remark, Channi questions BJP govt on Pulwama terror strike probe

In a video released on Monday, Channi said, “Jo desh ke jawan hai, humein unpe garv hai, jo desh ke raksha ke liye fauj me bharti hoke hamari raksha ke liye har samay taiyar rehte hain… Pichhli bari, jab parliament ke election they toh hamare 40 jawan shaheed ho gaye, unpar attack hua aur woh shaheed ho gaye. Aaj tak sarkar ne yeh tak pata nahin kiya ke woh attack kisne karvaya, kaun log uske liye zimmedar hai. (We take pride in our country’s soldiers who, by joining the army, remain constantly prepared to defend us. Last time during the parliamentary elections, 40 of our soldiers were martyred in an attack. The government still hasn’t figured out who was responsible for that attack and who should be held accountable.)”

“Now, elections have come again, and once again there has been an attack on our soldiers resulting in a casualty. I want to ask the government who are these people who carry out such attacks and why are they not being brought to book? Why does intelligence fail? Your former governor Satyapal Malik had already warned that such attacks could happen again,” he added.

“Yeh rajnitik hai (This is political). Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar demanded the Prime Minister’s resignation when the first attack happened and 40 soldiers were martyred. I have a video of this, where he stated on stage: ‘Amit Shah-ji you should demand the Prime Minister’s resignation’…I am releasing that video,” Channi said.

“Aaj phir attack hua hai aur humare jawan shaeed huye hai. Mein Jakhar-ji se puchhna chahtha hoon, aaj aapka stand kya hai? (Today, another attack has occurred and our soldier has been martyred. I want to ask Jakhar-ji, what is your stand today?) I’m saying to the BJP… Explain why the convoy was looted.

It is not a question of being ashamed in front of the public, it is a question of your governance. The last time soldiers were martyred, as chief minister I carried their bodies on my shoulders and went to the cremation ground. Why does this keep happening? This is my question: why does the BJP use this politically as a stunt? Why do we keep having martyrs? Is there an intelligence failure in the government,” he sought to know.

Channi also released Jakhar’s old video in which the former Congress leader is seen seeking the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the attacks in Pulwama and the Pathankot air base. The remarks were made in the run-up to the 2022 Assembly elections after a security breach was reported in Punjab when PM Modi’s convoy got stranded on a flyover for around 20 minutes due to a blockade by farmers.

In the video, Jakhar was heard saying, “In Pulwama, an incident occurred in which 40 soldiers were martyred in a terrorist attack… Modi sir says, ‘There is threat to my life in Punjab.’ Amit Shah-ji came yesterday and said that chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi should resign because his government could not ensure the prime minister’s security. Pulwama had central rule at the time when the attack occurred, so Amit Shah-ji and the prime minister should resign.”

“They say that Channi should resign. When there was an attack on the Pathankot air base, who came there? The ISI came. Who brought them? The BJP brought them, Modi brought them, Amit Shah brought them, and they are asking us this question. First, look at yourself, Modi sir,” Jakhar had said.