NEW DELHI: Former Meghalaya governor Satya Pal Malik has stirred a major controversy after he revealed an “explosive truth” in regards to the 2019 Pulwama attack.
As many as 40 personnel of the central reserve police force (CRPF) were killed in a terrorist attack after an explosives-laden vehicle rammed into a bus they were travelling in Pulwama, Jammu & Kashmir in February 2019.
Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge!
Speaking on the incident Former Meghalaya governor Satya Pal Malik, in an interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire said the union home ministry’s lapses led to the devastating terrorist attack on CRPF soldiers in Pulwama in February 2019.
The former Meghalaya governor revealed that the attack on the CRPF convoy in Pulwama was a result of ‘incompetence’ and “careless approach” by the central government.
It may be mentioned here that former Meghalaya governor Satya Pal Malik was serving as the governor of Jammu and Kashmir, when the Pulwama attack took place.
Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge!
Malik claimed that the CRPF had asked for aircraft to transport its personnel, but the request was turned down by the union home ministry.
He also spoke of how sanitisation of the route was not done effectively.
Furthermore, the former Meghalaya governor said that all of these lapses were raised by him directly when Modi called him from outside Corbett Park shortly after the Pulwama attack.
He said that the prime minister told him to keep quiet about this and not tell anyone.
Separately, Malik said that NSA Ajit Doval also told him to keep quiet and not talk about it.
Malik said he immediately realised that the intention was to put the blame on Pakistan and derive electoral benefit for the government and the BJP.
Malik also said that there was grave intelligence failure in the Pulwama incident because the car carrying 300 kilograms of RDX explosives had come from Pakistan but was travelling around the roads and villages of Jammu and Kashmir for 10-15 days without being detected and without anyone knowing.