BJP slams Chavan’s remarks on Operation Sindoor, demands apology from Congress

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday (December 17, 2025) hit out at former Maharashtra Chief Minister and Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan for allegedly saying that India “lost on the very first day” of Operation Sindoor. It accused the Congress of “playing into the hands of foreign powers and indulging in anti-national acts”.

Speaking to the media, BJP MP and spokesperson Sambit Patra said Mr. Chavan is a prominent face of the Congress and is considered close to the Gandhi family, particularly Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra. “On Wednesday, he said when Operation Sindoor took place, we lost on the very first day, which means, India was defeated,” he said.

Mr. Patra said the Congress leader claimed that the Air Force was grounded on the first day of the operation and that Indian fighter jets were shot down. “This is a treasonous statement, and today he has even refused to apologise for it,” he said.

Highlighting India’s military actions, he said the operation was carried out deep inside Pakistan, almost 100 km into Bahawalpur, a place where Indian forces had never reached before, and delivered a decisive blow. “The whole world witnessed that over 11 airfields were destroyed,” he said.

Terming Mr. Chavan’s remarks “objectionable” and “anti-national”, the BJP leader alleged that the Congress leader had said India should not maintain an Army of 1.2 million soldiers and that the force should be used for other purposes. “He even said that the Army is of no importance,” Mr. Patra said.

He alleged that the Congress appeared to be standing with Mr. Chavan’s comments and said that the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Mr. Gandhi also seemed to be supporting him. He accused the Congress of attempting to humiliate India and the Army on international platforms under pressure.

“Attacking the strength of the Indian Army and portraying India as a defeated nation is a direct attack on the morale of the entire nation,” Mr. Patra said, alleging that the Congress was “playing into the hands of foreign powers”. He demanded an apology from the Congress leadership.

The BJP leader slammed Mr. Gandhi’s remarks in Germany over India’s manufacturing capacity. “Parliament is currently in session in India, several important Bills are being discussed in the House, but Rahul Gandhi is in Germany addressing the Indian diaspora,” he said.

“Today, Rahul Gandhi visited the BMW factory in Munich. There, while discussing production, he praised the system and also expressed his regret that India’s production is not good. His repeated visits abroad and statements from foreign soil that insult India... somewhere reflect the sentiments that he and the Congress party harbour towards India,” Mr. Patra said.

Pointing out that the Index of Industrial Production of India is currently on a positive growth trend, he said in July 2025, India’s manufacturing sector recorded a growth rate of 5.4%, and in September 2025 it was 4.8%. “Currently, India’s GDP growth rate is 8.2%, which is one of the best in the world. About 17% of this contribution comes from the manufacturing sector. Whether it is the PLI scheme or other schemes, production in the country is continuously increasing through all of them,” he said.