A task force has been set up by Congress chief Rahul Gandhi on national security, in order to create a vision paper in the wake of the Pulwama terror attack in which a Jaish-e-Mohammed’s suicide bomber killed 40 CRPF jawans.
Lt Gen DS Hooda (retd) will be leading the task force, who is the Northern Army Command’s commanding officer. He is known for overseeing the surgical strikes following the Uri attack, against Pakistan Occupied Kashmir’s terror camps.
Preparation of vision paper
Sources said that the vision paper will be prepared by the task force on strategy, after consulting a group of experts, in order to guard the borders, reported News18. According to Hooda, it will take a month to complete the report.
Mentioning that the report will give rise to debates on India’s national security issues, Hooda said, “The task force will be a mix of experts. Looking at former diplomats, former military personnel and also those who have served in the police in Maoist areas.”
Congress President Rahul Gandhi to set up a Task Force on National Security to prepare a vision paper for the country. Lt Gen DS Hooda (retd) to lead the Task Force and prepare the paper in consultation with a select group of experts. pic.twitter.com/TnxtZSOtpw
— ANI (@ANI) February 21, 2019
Hooda and Gandhi met on Thursday, January 21, hours after the Narendra Modi government was taken on by the Congress, for intel failures that led to the Pulwama terror attack on February 14. The taskforce is being made to counter the BJP, which, following the terror attack, has managed to get hold of the political narrative surrounding nationalism and security.
Both the BJP and the Congress had claimed that they will not politicise the deadly attack, however, Amit Shah recently said in a rally that the sacrifice of the CRPF jawans will not go in vain, as it is not the Congress but the BJP government which is at the Centre.
Questions raised
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Narendra Modi was questioned by the Congress on February 21 as to why they have not accepted that they are responsible for the massive intelligence failure. It pointed out that two days before the Pulwama attack, an input was shared by Jammu and Kashmir police with all security agencies, which claimed that a video uploaded online indicated that there was a chance of such an attack being carried out.
Further, the party raised questions on how, despite enormous security, the vehicle reached the convoy, and how local terrorist Adil Ahmed Dar got hold of the huge quantity of RDX that he used to carry out the blast.
Among several allegations and criticism, Modi was also slammed by Congress’s chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala for failing to announce national mourning and arriving an hour late at the airport where the coffins of the jawans were brought. He also questioned why the proposal of BSF for air courier was ignored.
The task force, a mix of experts, will comprise former diplomats, former military men as well as those who have served in Maoist areas in the police.
“Yet another positive and welcome step towards a strong nation and stronger national security by Congress President @RahulGandhi. The experience that Lt Gen (Retd) D S Hooda brings in, will benefit the nation in the long run,” tweeted Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi.
Although how effective the report will be is not certain, it will at least give rise to a debate on preparing a plan for national security for India.