Lt Gen. DS Hooda (retired), the top army officer who oversaw the 2016 surgical strikes, will lead a Congress task force mandated to draw up a vision paper for India’s national security, the party announced on Thursday.
The announcement came hours after the Congress launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the ruling BJP over last week’s Pulwama terror attack that killed 40 soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir.
During the day, the Congress blamed the government for the attack, accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of shooting for a film when the country was mourning and later, going soft on Pakistan during discussions with the Saudi Crown Prince.
The effort comes handy to congress as it dent the BJP’s effort to position itself as a party that is best equipped to defend national security.
The decision to set up a task force comprising a select group of experts led by Lt Gen. Hooda came in this context. As the Northern Army commander, Lt Gen Hooda had overseen the 2016 surgical strikes conducted after the terror attack on an army base in Uri in which 19 Indian soldiers were killed. The suicide attackers had come from Pakistan.
