Opposition salutes forces, seeks answers on Operation Sindoor anniversary

OPposition parties on th paid tributes to the armed forces on the number one day of remembrance of functioning Sindoor but also questioned the telephone exchange government over the ceasefire, reported military losses and China’s alleged support to Pakistan during the armed conflict in May 2025.Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh demanded an independent inquiry into the operation on the lines of the Kargil Review Committee.“The first announcement of the ceasefire that halted Operation Sindoor unexpectedly was made at 5:37 PM IST on May 10, 2025, by the US secretary of state Marco Rubio, who claimed that it was intervention by President Trump that had made this possible,” Ramesh said on social media platform X.He added that Trump had “repeated this claim over a hundred times in different countries without ever having been refuted even once by his good friend Prime Minister Narendra Modi.” Operation Sindoor was launched on the intervening night of May 6-7, 2025 after Pakistan-based terrorists killed 26 civilians, mostly tourists, in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22 last year.Indian armed forces subsequently struck nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), including the Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters in Bahawalpur and the Lashkar-e-Taiba camps in Muridke. A ceasefire was agreed upon on May 10 after Pakistan’s director general of military operations requested his Indian counterpart.Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also paid tribute to the armed forces and said on X, “We salute the valour and sacrifice of our brave armed forces, who fought with unbridled determination and fortitude during Operation Sindoor. The spirit of India stands unbroken, resolute and united against every act of terrorism.”He added that the country would “never forget, nor forgive” the killing of the 26 civilians in Pahalgam. Rahul Gandhi too paid his tribute to the armed forces.India has consistently maintained that the ceasefire was reached bilaterally between the two directors general of military operations without any third-party involvement, and has repeatedly rejected US President Donald Trump’s claims of mediation.The government, however, has not responded to the opposition’s demand for an independent review of Operation Sindoor.Marking the anniversary, the Indian Army posted a video on X at exactly 1:05 AM on Thursday — the precise time the strikes began a year ago — carrying the message: “India forgets nothing. India forgives nothing.”