India will no longer be helpless in the face of terror,Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday, and asserted that a “New Indiawill pay back terrorists with interest” while “their influence has beencurtailed and will be curbed further”.
Modi also accused some opposition parties of doubting thearmed forces and his government’s fight against terrorism, saying theirstatements are “helping Pakistan and harming the country”.
Asking the opposition parties to “stop weakening India” withtheir statements to strengthen their own politics, the Prime Minister said,”Modi will come and go, India will remain.” He did not name any party.
Addressing a public meeting here, Modi also hailed wingcommander Abhinandan Varthaman, saying every Indian was proud of him.
“Every Indian is proud that the brave wing commanderAbhinandan belongs to Tamil Nadu,” he said after inaugurating severalgovernment projects in the rail and road sectors.
Reiterating his government’s resolve against terrorism byretaliation, Modi slammed the previous Congress-led UPA government for “notfollowing such aggressive tactics” and accused it of “blocking surgical strikespost 26/11 Mumbai attacks in November 2008”.
The country has been facing the menace of terrorism foryears “but there is a big difference now. India will no longer be helpless inthe face of terror”, Modi said.
“This is a New India, this is an India that will return thedamage done by terrorists with interest,” he said, adding, “influence ofterrorists and terrorism is curtailed and is going to be curtailed even more”.
The events of the past two days, an apparent reference toIAF’s air strikes, have demonstrated yet again the strengths of the country’sarmed forces, he said.
However, he said, it was sad that a few political parties”suspect our fight against terror”.
When the entire nation supports the country’s armed forces,they “suspect the armed forces”, he said.
“These are the same people whose statements are helpingPakistan and harming India. They are the same people whose statements arehappily quoted in the Parliament of Pakistan and in the radio of Pakistan,”Modi said.
“They should clarify: do they believe our armed forces orthey believe those forces who support terrorism on our soil? I want to tellthem—Modi will come and go, India will remain. Please stop weakening India tostrengthen your own politics,” he said.
“We are Indians first and your politics can wait. It is thesafety of our nation that is at stake,” the Prime Minister said.
He asserted that the entire world was supporting India inits fight against terror.
Citing reports, the prime minister said though the IndianAir Force wanted to carry out surgical strikes post 26/11 Mumbai terrorattacks, “UPA blocked it”.
He rued the bomb blasts at Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai,Bengaluru and Pune between 2004 and 2014 when the UPA was in power.