New Delhi: Congress leader Alka Lamba landed in hot water on Sunday after mistakenly referring to ‘Operation Sindoor’ as ‘Operation Blue Star’ during a press briefing at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) office in New Delhi.
The All India Mahila Congress president was addressing the media to criticise the BJP over controversial remarks made by its MPs in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack.
Congress Slams BJP Over 'Operation Sindoor' Claims
Lamba accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of exploiting a national security operation for political mileage. She criticised BJP MP Ram Chander Jangra for his insensitive remarks about Pahalgam victims and lashed out at Madhya Pradesh Deputy CM Jagdish Devda, who claimed the entire nation bows before Prime Minister Narendra Modi for ordering the cross-border strikes under ‘Operation Sindoor’.
Lamba also played a video of BJP MP Vijay Shah allegedly making derogatory comments about Colonel Sophiya Qureshi. She demanded that a special session of Parliament be convened for a full briefing on the operation and criticised a viral image of PM Modi dressed in military attire on a BJP banner, calling it a politicisation of the armed forces.
However, during her impassioned address, Lamba mistakenly demanded a session on 'Operation Blue Star,' a reference to the 1984 military operation in the Golden Temple. The gaffe quickly went viral.
BJP Fires Back, Calls Mistake 'Mischief'
The BJP swiftly responded to the faux pas, calling it more than just a verbal slip. BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla took to X (formerly Twitter), saying, “This is not ignorance. It is mischief—deliberate. Not slip of tongue but slip of mindset.” He accused Congress leaders, including Lamba, of undermining the armed forces.
Later, Lamba addressed the controversy with a sarcastic post on X, suggesting the BJP was more focused on her wording than the substance of her criticism.
“If I say something other than Operation Sindoor once, the BJP bites like a mosquito,” she quipped in Hindi, defending her core arguments and calling for accountability from the ruling party over the Pahalgam attack and its aftermath.
