"Don’t Hide Behind Armed Forces’ Bravery": Gaurav Gogoi Tells Amit Shah

Congress MP and Deputy Leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi on Monday launched a sharp attack on Union Home Minister Amit Shah, accusing him of deflecting blame for the recent Pahalgam terror attack and hiding behind the courage of the armed forces. Gogoi said Shah should have accepted moral responsibility for the government's failure and adhered to the principle of Rajdharma.

Participating in the debate on Operation Sindoor in Parliament, Home Minister Amit Shah made a passing reference to Gogoi’s visit to Pakistan over a decade ago. Reacting strongly to this remark, Gogoi told reporters that his visit predates Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s controversial 2015 trip to Pakistan.

“I had gone to Pakistan long before Modi-ji went there to eat biryani. I fail to understand why Amit Shah raised that issue now. Instead, he could have better explained why the BCCI is pushing for an India-Pakistan cricket match. Perhaps he has more knowledge and insight on that,” said Gogoi.

He criticised the government for turning the debate into a political blame game rather than acknowledging its own shortcomings in preventing the Pahalgam tragedy.

“Today was a moment for the government to accept its failure. But instead, they chose to look backwards. Amit Shah tried to shield his ministry’s lapses behind the bravery and patriotism of the armed forces. The Indian Army and Air Force successfully carried out their responsibilities under Operation Sindoor. But it is the Ministry of Defence that oversees such operations, not the Home Ministry,” Gogoi said.

He pointed out that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had already addressed the nation on the military aspects of the operation, and accused Shah of attempting to politicise the moment to escape accountability.

“Rather than speaking on the institutional failures that led to the Pahalgam attack, the Home Minister deflected blame and hid behind the courage of our soldiers. That is not acceptable. He should have come forward and accepted moral responsibility. This was one of the deadliest terrorist attacks on innocent civilians in the past 20 years. The people of India expect accountability, not diversion,” Gogoi said.

He concluded by invoking the principle of Rajdharma, stating that Amit Shah should have conducted himself with greater responsibility and owned up to the security lapses.

The Congress party has been consistently raising concerns over intelligence failures and alleged security lapses leading up to the attack in Pahalgam, where multiple Amarnath pilgrims lost their lives in one of the worst terror strikes in recent years. The government has defended its response, citing swift military action under Operation Sindoor, which reportedly neutralised several militants in retaliatory strikes.

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