Operation Sindoor: Rahul Gandhi slams government's handling of military response; says pilots' hands were 'tied' during strike - Top quotes

NEW DELHI: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi , addressing the Lower House on Tuesday, launched a sharp critique of the government's handling of Operation Sindoor — India’s military response to the Pahalgam terror attack .

The debate in Parliament has sparked heated exchanges, with the Opposition accusing the government of lacking strategic clarity , and the ruling BJP hitting back over "disruptions" and "politicising national security."

Gandhi, while underlining the Opposition’s support for the armed forces, said the government displayed insufficient political will and imposed operational restrictions on the military. “Even before Operation Sindoor began, the Opposition committed itself to stand like a rock with the government and the forces,” he said.

The Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 people on April 22, prompted India to launch a cross-border operation on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure across Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan. Over 100 terrorists were neutralised, according to the government. The operation concluded with a ceasefire understanding between India and Pakistan on May 10.

Here are the top quotes from Rahul Gandhi’s speech:

On opposition’s support for Operation Sindoor

• “The moment Operation Sindoor began, in fact, before it began, the Opposition committed itself, all the parties, that we will stand like a rock with the forces and with the elected government of India.”
• “I met a victim’s family in UP — a man was killed before his wife. It pains every Indian. What happened was wrong. We all condemned it…”

Rahul corners Centre over Rajnath singh’s speech

• “I was listening to Rajnath Singh. He said Operation Sindoor began at 1:05 am and lasted 22 minutes. Then he said something shocking — ‘We called Pakistan at 1:35 am and told them that we do not want escalation and we targeted only non-military targets.’ Maybe he doesn’t know what he revealed. You told Pakistanis what you would do.”
• “The DGMO of India was told to ask for a ceasefire at 1:35 am on the night of the operation. You directly conveyed to Pakistan that you don’t want to fight.”

On political will and freedom of operation

• “There are two words — ‘Political Will’ and ‘Freedom of Operation’. If you want to utilise Indian Armed Forces, you need 100% political will and full freedom of operation.”
• “Yesterday, Rajnath Singh compared 1971 and Sindoor. I’d remind him — there was political will in 1971. The Seventh Fleet was approaching, and the PM said do whatever is needed. Indira Gandhi told General Manekshaw: take six months, one year — you must have freedom of action. 1 lakh Pakistani soldiers surrendered and a new country was formed.”

On restrictions on the Air Force

• “You went into Pakistan and told our pilots not to attack their air defence. It was bound that the aircraft would be downed. You tied the hands of our pilots.”
• “IAF made no mistake. The mistake was made by the political leadership, which said military targets could not be attacked.”
• “Captain Shiv Kumar, defence attaché in Indonesia, said: ‘I may not agree with the claim that India lost many aircraft, but I do agree we lost some — because of the constraints from political leadership not to attack Pakistan’s military or air defences.’”
• “CDS Anil Chauhan said what mattered was not that jets were downed, but why they were. He said mistakes were rectified. I want to tell him — the Indian Air Force made no mistake. The mistake was in political instructions.”

On government’s strategic messaging and international standing

• “The Government of India informed Pakistan we don’t want to fight. We have simply carried out this action.”
• “The new normal is that the chief architect of the Pahalgam attack is having lunch with the President of the United States. Now, there’s another new normal — even before the operation ends, we declare victory.”
• “EAM and defence minister said we deterred Pakistan. Really? Asim Munir, the man who did terrorism in India, is being thanked by the US President. Trump said he wanted to thank him. For what? For spreading terrorism?”
• “US President Donald Trump has said 29 times that he brokered the ceasefire. Fine, if he’s lying, then let PM Modi stand here and say: ‘Donald Trump, you are a liar.’ If he has the courage of Indira Gandhi, let him say it here in Parliament.”

On foreign policy and China-Pakistan nexus

• “A few days ago, I said in the House that India’s biggest foreign policy challenge was to keep Pakistan and China separated. But we failed. The Indian government thought they were fighting Pakistan. When they arrived, they realised they were fighting Pakistan and China.”