PM, home minister busy in political work, terrorists took advantage of it: Sena (UBT) on Poonch attack

Slamming the BJP-ruled Centre over the recent terror attack on an Army vehicle in Jammu and Kashmir, the Shiv Sena (UBT) on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were busy in political work and terrorists took advantage of it. The party in an editorial in its mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ said even after the revocation of Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, violence continues in the Kashmir Valley and there is still no peace there. “The prime minister, home minister and defence minister are busy in their political work (a reference to Karnataka polls) and terrorists have taken advantage of this and flung a bomb at an Army vehicle in Jammu-Kashmir,” the editorial said. Assembly polls in BJP-ruled Karnataka will be held on May 10.

Five Army personnel were killed on Thursday after their vehicle caught fire following a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch. The soldiers were from a Rashtriya Rifles unit deployed for counter-terror operations. The PM speaks the language of war with Pakistan and he remembers Gautam Buddha’s teachings of peace when it comes to China, the editorial said. Taking a dig at the PM and home minister, the editorial said that terrorists dare to attack when there is a “strong prime minister and a firm home minister” in the country. So there is definitely something wrong with it, it said. The central agencies are the weapons of Modi-Shah and terrorists do not seem to be scared of them, it added. Banned terror group People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), a proxy wing of terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed, has claimed responsibility for the Poonch attack. There are reports suggesting that it was a handiwork of banned Lashker-e-Taiba group also.