Manmohan's response to terror not as strong as Narendra Modi, says Sheila Dikshit

Delhi Congress chief Sheila Dikshit on Thursday acknowledged that former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s “reaction” after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks was “not as strong and determined” as that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the Pulwama strike but added that the latter does everything for “politics”. “Manmohan Singh, yes, I agree with you, was not as strong as and as determined as he (Modi) is. But there is also a feeling that he is doing it all for politics,” the senior Congress leader said in an interview to Vir Sanghvi for CNN-News18 channel.

She was responding when told that after the Indian air strike at Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terror camp in Balakot in Pakistan on February 26, Modi would argue that when things like Mumbai attacks happened (in 2008),  “we did nothing in return whereas he has offered a strong basket of response.” Dikshit, a former three-time Chief Minister of Delhi, was also asked to comment on the "mood of national security" after the air strike and that “people will look to Mr Modi because he is a strong leader.”

In response, she shot back, “What do you mean by national security?” Singhvi said according to Mr Modi, it would mean going to other person’s house and teaching him a lesson.

To this, Dikshit said, “I want to ask you a counter question. Has there been any time that security of this country has not been taken care of, even during Indira ji’s time? After the air strike, Modi has been questioning why the then UPA government did not respond as strongly after November 2008 attacks, in which 10 Pakistani terrorists targeted a number of places in the financial capital of India, and killed 166 people.

(With inputs from agencies.)