BJP's ‘modern-day Mir Jaffar’ retort on Mallikarjun Kharge's ‘PM Modi had intel’ remark over Pahalgam attack

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday launched a fierce counterattack on Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge over his "PM Modi had an intel" remark, calling him a “modern-day Mir Jafar” for his explosive allegations against the Prime Minister.

Demanding an "unconditional apology" from the Congress chief, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader CR Kesavan said his remarks were unpardonable, indefensible, and cannot be forgiven.

"He (Mallikarjun Kharge) has made treacherous statements similar to a modern-day Mir Jaffar. His toxic, baseless, unfounded rant against the Prime Minister is most deplorable and condemnable. Everybody demands an unconditional apology from him, and he should also come clean on what kind of inputs he received to make such outrageous remarks," Kesavan said in a self-made video.

Also Read | IAF's high-intensity border drill, including Rafales and Sukhois from May 7-8; NOTAM issued

BJP leader's response came after Mallikarjun Kharge, at a rally in Ranchi on Tuesday, claimed that PM Modi had prior intelligence about the deadly April 22 attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam but failed to share it with security forces.

Kharge also suggested that Modi’s sudden cancellation of his April 19 visit to Srinagar was linked to the intelligence inputs and questioned why the same information wasn’t passed on to those on the ground.

"A major terrorist attack took place in the country on April 22, in which 26 people were killed. There was an intelligence failure; the government has acknowledged it and said it will resolve it. But if they were aware of it, then why wasn't anything done?" Kharge stated.

Also Read | India calls OIC statement on Pakistan standoff 'absurd': Islamabad 'misguided' group

"I have received information that three days before the attack, an intelligence report was sent to Prime Minister Modi, and based on that, he cancelled his program to visit Kashmir. I also read this in a newspaper. If intelligence could warn that it wasn't safe for you (the PM) to go there, why didn't you take proper steps to protect the tourists and civilians?" the Congress President alleged.

'Congress started content creation for Pakistan': BJP's Shehzad Poonawalla

Additionally, BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said that the Congress party have again started doing "vote bank politics."

"Since the banning of some Pakistani YouTubers in India, all the leaders of the Congress Party have started content creation for Pakistan. We just saw that Charanjit Singh Channi raised questions on the surgical strike, attacked the Army's morale," Poonawalla said.

Also Read | 'Crash blackouts’ during mock drills tomorrow: What can happen?

"In all-party meetings, Congress leaders say that they are with the country and the Army. But as soon as they leave the all-party meeting, they start doing vote bank politics," he added.

Tensions heightened between India and Pakistan

Meanwhile, security remains tight in Jammu and Kashmir, with the Centre stepping up its civil defence preparedness, including a nationwide mock drill scheduled for May 7.

The government has announced a series of measures, including putting the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance, to send a strong message to Pakistan for its support of cross-border terrorism.

(with PTI inputs)