Union home minister Amit Shah on Wednesday attacked the Congress for “giving away” parts of Kashmir to Pakistan when it was in power and said that the Union government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi was committed to ending terrorism and ensuring the return of Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. Opposition MPs protest in Rajya Sabha during the Monsoon Session of Parliament, in New Delhi on Wednesday. (ANI PHOTO)

Shah was speaking in the Rajya Sabha even as the Opposition walked out in protest over the PM’s absence from the Upper House during a special discussion on Operation Sindoor.

“I want to tell the Congress that POK was given by you, and only the BJP government will bring it back,” he said.

“Look at the coincidence that they died of bullet wounds in their heads. After the Pahalgam attacks I was requested by the family members of the killed to shoot the culprits in their heads, and coincidentally their demands have been fulfilled,” Shah said on the killing of the three terrorists.

He also accused the Congress of creating the bogey of hindu terror in response to the 26/11 Mumbai attack. “I proudly declare to the world… Hindus can never be terrorists” Shah said.

The Opposition criticised the PM for not being present and speaking in the Rajya Sabha, as he had done a day before in the Lok Sabha. The government said its prerogative was to decide who will reply, but the Opposition dubbed the PM’s absence as an “insult to the House”.

As soon as Shah rose to speak, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, said, “Members had demanded that after 16 hours of discussion, the Prime Minister should be present and address the House…Most of our questions are directed at him. It’s not that you (Shah) are not capable of replying…But if the PM is present and still chooses not to come, it is an insult to the House.”

As the opposition closed ranks and walked out, Shah slammed Kharge.

“He (Kharge) is not allowed to speak on important issues. The BAC decided that the discussion will be for 16 hours, and who will reply will be decided by the government. I know why they are walking out…for all these years, to protect their vote bank, they did not do anything to prevent terrorism,” he said.

Congratulating the armed forces for the precision strikes on terror camps in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor and more recently for Operation Mahadev, which led to the killing of three terrorists involved in the April 22 Pahalgam attack that left 26 people dead, Shah slammed the Congress for failing to take a tough stance against terrorism.

“If the Congress had been in power, they would have declared Pakistan innocent. Congress has no moral right to question the BJP on terrorism. Today, we have a Prime Minister who responds with BrahMos missiles, not dossiers,” he said, criticising the Congress for not taking decisive steps against terror operatives.

He said the party was opposed to the Prevention of Terrorism Act or POTA, a law passed in Parliament during the BJP rule in 2002 and scrapped it right away when it came to power in 2004.

Responding to the Congress’s charge about the timing of Operation Mahadev, the minister said he had wanted the terrorist responsible for the “barbaric killing” of tourists in Pahalgam dead within days of the attack. Taking potshots at the Congress, he said, “…It is the mentality of the Congress party… in front of the whole world (P) Chidambaram proved that they will not be scared to support Pakistan for their vote bank; they will not be scared to save LeT for the sake of the vote bank. I also ask why they were killed today. They should’ve been killed much before.”

Shah said the terror attack was used to deliver a message that Pakistan will not allow Kashmir to become free from terrorism. “I want to give a message too… Kashmir will be free of terrorism,” he said, pointing out that the PM on April 24 has assured that those responsible for the attack would be punished “beyond their imagination”.

He credited the PM for giving the armed forces the “operational freedom” to choose the time and the action in response to the Pahalgam attack.

Shah also responded to Opposition criticism over US President Donald Trump’s repeated assertion that he mediated a ceasefire between India and Pakistan, and said the pause was in response to the Pakistani DGMO’s request.

“During Operation Sindoor, terrorists who were responsible for attacks during the UPA regime were killed,” he said.

Shah cited the names of terrorists associated with the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed who were killed during the May 7 operation across nine locations in Pakistan and PoK. Terrorists such as Dawood Ibrahim had fled the country during the Congress regime, he said.

Criticising former Union minister P Chidambaram, Shah said, “Why does Chidambaram need proof? Who is he trying to save—Pakistan or the LeT?”

He said the forensic evidence and eyewitness accounts confirmed the involvement, and accused Lashkar’s front, The Resistance Front (TRF), for executing the attack. “Chidambaram questions if Operation Sindoor was decisive. Was (war in) 1965 or 1971 decisive? Then why did terrorism grow under the Congress?” he said.

Shah lashed out at the party and said it was under Jawaharlal Nehru’s premiership that Indian territory was lost to China.

“After the Indo-China war, Prime Minister Nehru gave away 38,000 square kilometers of Indian territory to China. At that time, the US had suggested that India should be made a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council instead of China. But the Congress government declined, pushing a case for China,” he said.