Why Opposition is going soft on Modi government for security lapses in Pahalgam

On the morning of November 28, 2008, while the Mumbai terror attack was still underway, several national newspapers carried a full-page, blood-spattered advertisement from the Bharatiya Janata Party describing Manmohan Singh’s government as “weak”, “unwilling” and “incapable”.

Clearly, the BJP was pulling no punches in attacking the ruling United Progressive Alliance for the security lapses that led to 26/11. So much so that both Home Minister Shivraj Patil and National Security Advisor MK Narayanan had to soon resign from their positions.

Over 16 years after the Mumbai attacks, another gruesome terrorist act – this time in Pahalgam, Kashmir – claimed the lives of 26 tourists on April 22.

The opposition response, however, has been relatively muted this time. In fact, at an all-party meeting held by the Modi government two days after the incident, a united opposition extended support to the government for any step that it would take.

Explaining this decision, spokespersons from three major opposition outfits told Scroll that their parties had deferred to what they described as overwhelming public support for “strong” government action.

This approach from the opposition has meant that questions about the alleged lapses in security and the need to hold officials responsible for them have taken a backseat in political discussions so far.

‘People want action’

Some of the...

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