Myanmar surgical strike a 'lesson' to all militant groups, says government

Mumbai/New Delhi: A day after Army carried out the first of its kind surgical strike in Myanmar, Government on Wednesday said India’s response is a “lesson” to all militant groups that it will not hesitate in going beyond its borders to eliminate terrorists. As the pre-dawn cross-border operation appeared to signal a possible change in India’s counter-terrorism approach, the Government also said it has “zero tolerance” towards terror and terror organisations. [caption id=“attachment_2289400” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. PTI[/caption] Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, meanwhile, fully backed the Army’s strike on insurgent camps in Myanmar, saying such operations should be continued to completely flush out militants from the region. “The military’s action against insurgents with assistance from the Myanmarese government speaks volumes about India’s resolve to fight terror. This is a lesson and a message to all the terror groups that India will not hesitate in going beyond its geographical borders to eliminate terrorists,” Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said. Javadekar was speaking to reporters in Mumbai while outlining the achievements of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government’s one year in office. Mum on ops in Pakistan While replying to a query, he, however, refused to comment on if India will carry out a similar strike on Pakistan-based groups plotting terror against India. A top army officer on Wednesday also said the surgical strike carried out by the Indian army inside Myanmar following an insurgent attack in Manipur cannot be linked to the situation along LoC in Kashmir where similar “hot pursuit” of militants was not possible. “Manipur incident (strikes in Myanmar) is according to the situation and circumstances there. I would not like to connect one with the other,” General officer Commanding of Army’s 15 Corps Lt General Subrata Saha said. Lt Gen Saha was replying to a question whether Army will undertake similar operations against militants on the other side of LoC in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. “A response or reaction to any operational situation is based on the situation in that area. I do not think it is professionally right to link one (situation) with another,” he added. In New Delhi, senior Minister Nitin Gadkari at a briefing on the Union Cabinet meeting initially ignored questions by reporters on whether the ministers congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the cross-border operation. When pressed further, he said that the issue was not discussed at the meeting and that the Prime Minister was not congratulated at the meeting. “It is already clear that we have a zero tolerance towards terror and terror organisation. The official spokesperson of military has given detailed information about the action that our military has done,” Gadkari said. He was asked whether hot pursuit will be the new policy of Government of India in cases of terror strike. Union Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore had yesterday said, “This message is now very clear to all those who harboured intentions of terror on our country. Unprecedented though, but our Prime Minister has taken a very bold step and given a go ahead for hot pursuit into Myanmar.” In the first such cross-border operation, special forces of the army in coordination with the air force yesterday carried out a surgical strike inside Myanmar, killing insurgents of the groups believed to be responsible for the ambush in Manipur that left 18 soldiers dead. A total of 38 insurgents were killed in the strike, according to latest reports. Elite commandos of the army in coordination with the air force went a few kilometres inside Myanmarese territory to destroy two camps of insurgents hiding there after their attacks in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh last week by suspected NSCN(K) and KYKL outfits. PTI