Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], May 18 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National Spokesperson CR Kesavan on Sunday hit back at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his accusations against External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar that the government 'informed Pakistan' ahead of Operation Sindoor, calling the claim a distortion of facts and an attack on the armed forces.

CR Kesavan alleged that Rahul Gandhi is 'distorting the truth and misrepresenting facts to malign our armed forces,' and demanded that the Congress MP delete his tweet and issue an unconditional apology.

Speaking with ANI, Kesavan said, 'Rahul Gandhi's tweet is downright dishonest, deceptive and dangerous as Rahul Gandhi is distorting the truth and misrepresenting facts to malign our armed forces...Rahul Gandhi should first withdraw and delete his tweet and tender an unconditional apology.'

Referring to the May 11 press conference by Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt General Rajiv Ghai, Kesavan emphasised that the Indian Army had attempted to inform Pakistan of its intent to strike terror infrastructure, only after the operation had already commenced.

'Rahul Gandhi's false allegations have been clearly deflated and debunked by the press conference on May 11th by DGMO Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai,' Kesavan said.

Lt General Ghai had said that the compulsion of India to strike at the 'heart of terror' was communicated to the Pakistan DGMO, however the Pakistan side had 'brusquely turned down' the request.

Kesavan further requested Rahul Gandhi to 'desist from desperate action to stay politically relevant.'

'Rahul Gandhi should desist from desperate action to stay politically relevant and immediately withdraw and delete his tweet and tender an unconditional apology for trying to peddle false propaganda.'

Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi posted a video on X, in which Jaishankar was seen speaking to the media on Thursday following the inauguration of the Honduras Embassy in Delhi.

In his X post, Gandhi alleged wrongdoing by the government, stating: 'Informing Pakistan at the start of our attack was a crime. EAM has publicly admitted that the GOI did it. Who authorised it? How many aircraft did our air force lose as a result?'

India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 in response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that left 26 civilians dead. As part of the operation, Indian Armed Forces targeted terror infrastructure deep inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, eliminating over 100 terrorists linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen.

Following the strikes, Pakistan retaliated with cross-border shelling and attempted drone attacks. In response, India launched coordinated airstrikes that damaged key military infrastructure across 11 Pakistani airbases. On May 10, both sides announced an understanding on the cessation of hostilities. (ANI)