"Audacious leadership": Former IAF Chief Bhadauria lauds India's response against Pakistan, China
May 19, 2024
New Delhi [India], May 19 : Former Indian Air Force Chief and Bharatiya Janata Party member, RKS Bhadauria on Sunday, lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "audacious leadership" while highlighting India's response to the Pulwama terror attack and Galwan border standoff.
He said that Balakot airstrike showed to the world how far India will go to ensure action against terror act and refuted the narrative that India should refrain from acting against Pakistan because it has nuclear bomb.
Addressing an event in the national capital, the former IAF chief said, "Some examples of audacious leadership. First was Balakot, which was not only a response to Pulwama in one stroke but also called the nuclear bluff of Pakistan. It showed the world how far we are going to go to ensure action against a terrorist act, and it created a space within our own think tank, and many of our strategists were saying, because Pakistan is nuclear, don't even think of crossing the border...we created the space wherein strong action can be taken, I think that was audacious."
In 2019, after the Pulwama attack -- which killed over 40 Indian CRPF personnel -- the Indian Air Force carried out an airstrike against Pakistani terror camps in Balakot.
RKS Bhadauria also lauded India's response to China after Galwan border standoff. He said China's policy of 'Salami Slicing' is "history" adding that Beijing will "never succeed" in its aim.
"What happened after Galwan...the way we reacted, the quid-pro quo action taken by our Army. China knew the extent to which we were ready to go to...trust me, the Chinese policy of 'Salami Slicing', trying to get some land here and there, is now history. Never ever is China going to succeed in any such attempt and that again is because of the action demonstrated," Bhadauria said.
India and China have been in a military standoff for the last three years since May 2020, when the Chinese tried to aggressively alter the status quo on the Line of Actual Control.
The former IAF chief also praised the BJP government for swiftly acting on the Rafale jet deal, and emphasised that the Rafale was the strongest equipment in India's inventory during the Galwan clash.
"Nearly 15-16 years of effort to get a modern aircraft, Rafale was shrtlisted...when this government came, decision was taken by the leadership that this will be done government to government. Two years flat, contract signed, aircrafts delivered. When Galwan happened, Rafael was the strongest equipment that we had in our inventory and the Chinese knew it," he added.
Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in March this year. While joining the party, he said the last 10 years have seen 'landmark decisions' taken by the BJP-led government at the Centre.
