Your track record in dealing with terrorism is poor, Congress tells BJP on Gurdaspur attack

New Delhi: Slammed by BJP for obstructing Union Home Minister from making statement in Rajya Sabha on Gurdaspur terror attack, Congress on Thursday shot back and said BJP should refrain from delivering sermons on the sensitive issue as its track record in dealing with terrorism was “poor”. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala also distanced the party from the remarks of senior leader Digvijay Singh who had hoped that the “exemplary urgency and commitment” shown by the “government and judiciary” in Yakub Memon case will also be displayed in all cases of terror, irrespective of the religion of the accused. Responding to Union Minister Arun Jaitley’s charge that Congress was being “irresponsible” by not allowing Home Minister Rajnath Singh make a statement in Rajya Sabha on the terror attack, Surjewala said instead of delivering sermons, the government should work on brining back principal perpetrators of Mumbai blasts Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon and ensuring strongest of punishment to them.  "May I requestfully tell the BJP government as also their leaders to not give sermons to Congress party or the country considering BJP’s own poor track record in dealing with terrorism… BJP’s track record has been far from good in tackling terrorism. The last time BJP was in power, its foreign minister led terrorists like Maulana Masood Azhar and other and left them in Kandhar, Afghanistan," he told reporters here. He also said that V P Singh government, of which BJP was also a part, exchanged terrorists in lieu of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed’s daughter Rubia Sayeed. “When BJP was in power last time, former Prime Minister, whom we respect, Atal Bihar Vajpayee, had gone on a bus yatra to Pakistan while Pakistani army occupied Kargil. It took sacrifice of nearly 1,000 of our soldiers that we could get our land back. “BJP, instead of linking terror and every incident of terror to religion, caste or region, would be well adviced to take care of the national security, which is under question post Prime Minister’s Ufa visit and patting himself on his back. After that the infiltration incidents have gone up many fold,” he said. He said terrorism has returned to Punjab under BJP’s rule. Surjewala said Congress has tackled terrorism in different parts of the country by making “supreme sacrifices”. “Country, as also Congress party lost Indira Gandhi at the hands of terrorism. Congress and the country lost former PM Rajiv Gandhi…,” he said. Responding to questions on party leaders Digvijay Singh and Shashi Tharoor’s remarks, he said,“My comment is the same as on Shatrughan Sinha and Ram Jethmalani’s statements. People can have their own opinion. It is neither our opinion, nor can it be the opinion of the ruling party. Their opinion can be personal.” He said terrorism and crime cannot be linked in any way to a religion or a caste because neither criminal nor terrorism has either a religion or region. He said Yakub Memon was given punishment in accordance with law of this country. “President dismissed his mercy petition twice. Governor of Maharashtra dismissed Yakub Memon’s mercy petition also. So we see the punishment as a fructification of rule of law and judicial process of the country,” he said. To a poser on Congress’ stand on demands from certain quarters to abolish capital punishment, he said as far as the issue of death penalty is concerned, it has been in force for rarest of rare cases under IPC. “As far a rethink on the issue is concerned, Congress or any other political party cannot take a decision. In case a larger public debate happens ever in societal spectrum, including in various constitutional bodies, then it could be decided at that time and at appropriate level after complete consensus.” Surjewala said as of today, death penalty is part of the rule books and till it is part of law, it should be followed. PTI