A 1971 letter from Indira urging President Nixon to convince Pakistan to stop “wanton aggression” against India was shared by Union Minister Kiren Rijiju.
Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition, had questioned the government’s “political will” to attack Pakistan during the four-day raging border clash, but the center has retaliated after a massive parliament standoff over Operation Sindoor.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has revealed a letter from former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi from 1971, in which she questioned the “political will” of the Gandhi administration and urged then-US President Richard Nixon to convince Pakistan to stop bombing India.
Kindly allow four minutes to view this excerpt from Smt. Indira Gandhi’s letter to President Nixon. Is this Smt. Indira Gandhi ji’s political will? shared a link to Ms. Gandhi’s letter in the US archives and questioned Mr. Rijiju about X. Following Pakistan’s declaration of war against India, the letter dated December 5, 1971, attempted to defend any course of action that might be adopted to protect the nation’s security and territorial integrity.
“In this hour of danger, the Government and the people of India seek your understanding and urge you to persuade Pakistan to desist forthwith from the policy of wanton aggression and military adventurism which it has unfortunately embarked upon,” said Ms. Gandhi in her letter.
“May I request Your Excellency to exercise your undoubted influence with the Government of Pakistan to stop their aggressive activities against India and to deal immediately with the genesis of the problem of East Bengal, which has caused so much trial and tribulations to the people not only of Pakistan but of the entire sub-continent,” the letter went on to state.
After Mr. Gandhi accused the government of having “political will” to attack Pakistan and of leaving the military forces with their “hands tied behind their backs” during Operation Sindoor, Mr. Rijiju responded.
Mr. Gandhi brought up the allegations that India had lost several planes during the conflict at yesterday’s special session.
That only occurred as a result of government restrictions. In other words, you instructed our pilots to leave after tying their wrists behind their backs. This was said openly in the house by the defense minister. The argument is that political will was the deciding factor in the loss of planes. “You initiated the conflict and initially claimed that we lacked the political will,” Mr. Gandhi stated during his forty-minute speech.
After PM Modi reiterated to parliament that his government had allowed the forces to operate freely, he made his accusations. “The military forces were granted complete autonomy, and we instructed them to choose the best time, location, and method of operation. We gave them (Pakistan) a harsh lesson, and they are still having trouble sleeping,” he remarked.
