Operation Sindoor debate: Gaurav Gogoi leads opposition charge against government in Lok Sabha; asks 'how terrorists reached Pahalgam?'

NEW DELHI: As the Parliament on Monday continued debating the government’s military response under Operation Sindoor , a cross-border counter-terror operation after the Pahalgam terror attack , Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi sharply criticised defence minister Rajnath Singh ’s speech, accusing the government of failing to answer basic questions about the April 22 attack .

Singh had earlier hailed the swift 22-minute military strike that reportedly targeted over 100 terrorists in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, declaring that India acted with “decisive strength” and “moral clarity” under Prime Minister Modi's leadership.

While Rajnath Singh laid out a detailed defence of Operation Sindoor, Gaurav Gogoi focused his response on what he described as the government's silence over internal security lapses and the origin of the Pahalgam attack that claimed at least 22 civilian lives.

Here are Gaurav Gogoi’s top quotes from his Lok Sabha speech:

• “The country wants to know—100 days have passed since the Pahalgam attack, but this government has not brought the terrorists to justice.”
• “Rajnath Singh ji gave a lot of information, but did not say—how did the terrorists reach Pahalgam? That too is his responsibility as the Defence Minister.”
• “You speak of bravery and action, but the families of the victims still ask—how did the attack happen in the first place?”
• “Our soldiers are brave, our forces did their job, but the government’s job is to ensure attacks like Pahalgam never happen again.”
• “We are not questioning the army—we are questioning the government's failure to prevent the massacre. It is our constitutional duty to ask these questions in the interest of the nation.”
• "We want to know from Rajnath Singh ji today how many of our fighter jets were downed. We have to tell this not just to the public but also to our jawans, as they are being lied to as well..."
• “If some Rafale jets have been downed, I think it is a big loss.”
• “The entire country, and the Opposition, were supporting PM Modi. Suddenly, on 10th May, we got to know that there had been a ceasefire. Why? We wanted to know from PM Modi that if Pakistan was ready to kneel down, then why did you stop, and to whom did you surrender? The US President has said this 26 times that he forced India and Pakistan to announce a ceasefire."
• "Today, you have drones, Pegasus, satellites, CRPF, BSF, CISF and the Defence Minister went there a few days ago, but still you are not able to catch them... It took almost 1 hour for an Ambulance to reach Baisaran, where the attack took place. The army came on foot. I cannot forget those visuals when a mother and her daughter saw an Indian soldier; they started crying. They thought the terrorist wearing the uniform of a soldier who killed people in Baisaran was waiting for them. That soldier had to say that he was an Indian, and you were safe... This is the kind of terror the people had there. Rajnath Ji, you should have spoken one word on this terror."
• "In the end, who takes the responsibility of the Pahalgam attack? The LG of Jammu and Kashmir. If someone needs to take the responsibility, it is the Union Home Minister. Union HM and the Central Govt cannot hide behind the LG... The government is so weak and cowardly that it said that the Tour Operators are responsible for taking people to Baisaran without their permission or license... PM Modi came back from Saudi Arabia, but he did not visit Pahalgam. He attended a govt program and addressed a political rally in Bihar. If someone went to Pahalgam, it was our leader Rahul Gandhi."