Modi heading towards legal, political quagmire over military secrets leak

ISLAMABAD: The Narendra Modi regime is heading towards legal and political quagmire with Indian opposition leaders likely to seek joint parliamentary probe and once his close aides pressuring him to resign over leak of military secrets to a TV anchor.

Indian Congress President Sonia Gandhi said that the center’s silence on the purported WhatsApp chats of Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami about the Balakot airstrike was deafening. “There have been very disturbing reports on how national security has been so thoroughly compromised,” Gandhi said, according to Indian news agency Press Trust of India.

According to Indian media reports, in the upcoming stormy budget session, the opposition parties are likely to demand a time-bound probe by a joint parliamentary commission into the scam. Former Defence Minister AK Antony said the leaking of the official secret was treason and those involved must be punished and the prime minister must come clean.

Former Gujarat Chief Minister Shankersinh Vaghela also hit out at Narendra Modi for his alleged role in leaking information of the Balakot strike and demanded his resignation on Republic Day.

Vaghela, also once a close associate of Modi, said Arnab Goswami and Partho Dasgupta of BARC should be subjected to NARCO truth serum test to reveal more.

Andy Vermaut, member of the International Alliance for the Defense of Rights and Freedoms (AIDL) and President of PostVersa Fundamental Rights chapter said revelations proved that Modi had sacrificed lives of his own soldiers for political purposes. “I will therefore call for the resignation of Narendra Modi at all international forums. It is shameful for India and especially for Arnab Goswami and we on the international level strongly condemn his actions.”

Melina, an international human rights activist from the Netherlands, said Indian state-sponsored terrorism in Pulwama attack had been fully exposed after disclosure of 500-page chat of Republic TV anchor that. “This victory of the election of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is actually a celebration of the killing of your own soldiers,” said Ms Melina. -