Not everyone in Congress is keen to toe Rahul line ::::::: "Rahul Gandhi should ask how many Pakistani planes were shot" ..... "We know Rahul's admiration of China .... "How many aircraft India lost....," - says BJP :::: "Such questions are very immature"

On Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi's tweet asking how many aircraft India lost, BJP MP Brij Lal says, "Such questions are very immature. Operation Sindoor is ongoing... The visits of our Prime Minister and Defence Minister (toforward areas) refuted claims by Pakistan of destroying our Adampur and Bhuj air bases... 

EAM (Dr S Jaishankar) said -- we destroyed only terror bases and gave the message that we are destroying them only. 

When Pakistan tried to attack us through Turkish and Chinese drones, our indigenous missiles destroyed them... This is not only the defeat of Pakistan, but also of Turkey and China. We know Rahul Gandhi's admiration of China... 

Such questions from him depict irresponsible behaviour...".

BJP leader N V Subhash said in Hyderabad:

"Rahul Gandhi with his friends in the party have started degrading the Indian Armed forces and the democratic values of the country, in addition to Narendra Modi's government also. Its only a diplomatic warning to the Pakistan government about the issues that have happened earlier also... 

Such kind of statements do not go well with the people... He should immediately give an apology to S Jaishankar...".  

BJP leader Gaurav Vallabh says, "...Rahul Gandhi is asking how many Indian planes were shot down; he should ask how many Pakistani planes were shot down, how many Pakistani missiles were destroyed in the air. He will not ask this. He will speak the language of Pakistan..."

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Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on nominated to lead one of the seven delegations on India’s anti-terror stand to US and other countries. 

He says, "My party leadership is entitled to its opinion of my abilities or lack thereof, and I think that is really for them to explain. I have absolutely no comment to make on that. 

I am honoured to have been entrusted with the responsibility, and I will fulfil that responsibility just as I have fulfilled every responsibility entrusted to me in my rather long working life, whether at the United Nations or in the Congress Party...

.... I also mentioned to the parliamentary affairs minister that I assumed that he would be talking to the party leaderships of opposition parties, and he assured me that he would be. I found it entirely appropriate, as I said, that the country should rally together on this particularly important issue...". 

In a fresh attack, Rahul Gandhi asked EAM Dr S Jaishankar to again clarify whether India had 'informed' Pakistan about targeting the terrorist infrastructure on its soil, and what it had meant in terms of aircraft “lost” by India. 

Congress media department head Pawan Khera used an AICC briefing to repeat the allegations, adding that Jaishankar’s remarks may have helped terrorists “escape”.

For obvious reasons not everyone in Congress is too keen to toe Rahul line.

The Congress gad after Pahalgam attack declared unequivocal support for the government on whatever action it took against the terrorists.

“EAM Jaishankar’s silence isn’t just telling – it’s damning. So I’ll ask again: How many Indian aircraft did we lose because Pakistan knew? - Rahul Gandhi said.

"What losses did the country suffer? How many terrorists escaped?… What does it mean that you informed them? Do you trust the terrorists so much that they will stay there once you inform them?," asked Pawan Khera. 

Khera said: “Was it because of this spying that Azhar Masood and Hafiz Saeed escaped alive? Does the country not deserve to know that you saved Azhar Masood…? 

Many Congress leaders are not with the party on such blistering attack against Dr Jaishankar.

“To call Jaishankar an informer is stretching it a bit too far", said many and a few even lampooning at Khera and 'mentor Rahul Gandhi".

"Maybe we do not now how to conduct things in a dignified manner and moreover stretching it so far on a childish issue," said one Congressman.  

"Every issue has a certain elasticity… you don’t stretch it to the bone. In politics, you try to make a point but don’t stretch it too far which hurts the original point,” one party insider said.

"Our habit of making a statement every day is not taking us too far," a senior leader said.

Another leader said Rahul’s argument too was “problematic”. 

“The country, I think, is not in a position to know about losses suffered by our forces. We are entering a narrow lane, losing sight of the big picture.”

Dr Jaishankar was referring to the call made by Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt General Rajiv Ghai to his Pakistani counterpart Major General Kashif Abdullah after the Indian Armed Forces struck nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir between 1 am and 1.30 am on May 7.

Lt Gen Ghai had told his Pakistani counterpart that India had hit “carefully chosen” terror targets and had not struck military targets. A message was relayed to Pakistan that if it wanted to talk, India was willing to engage".

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