New Delhi [India], May 19 (ANI): Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan hit out at Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi for accusing External Affairs Minister Jaishankar of being silent on how many aircraft the Indian Air Force lost during Operation Sindoor.

Chouhan alleged that Rahul Gandhi had started opposing the country while opposing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and this would neither raise his status nor could it be called patriotism.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan said, 'It is unfortunate that leaders of responsible parties are asking such questions when the entire nation is standing against terrorism, Pakistan and enemies of the nation. The country should come before the party. He started opposing the country while opposing PM Modi. Neither will this raise your status, nor is it patriotism.'

Rahul Gandhi on Monday again questioned External Affairs Minister Jaishankar, accusing him of being silent on how many aircraft the Indian Air Force lost during the operation and said that the nation 'deserves the truth.'

'EAM Jaishankar's silence isn't just telling -- it's damning. So I'll ask again: How many Indian aircraft did we lose because Pakistan knew? This wasn't a lapse. It was a crime. And the nation deserves the truth,' Rahul Gandhi posted on X.

Rahul Gandhi shared a video of EAM Jaishankar of May 17 in which he said that 'At the start of the operation we have sent a message to Pakistan saying we are striking at infrastructure and we are not striking at the military, so military has the option of standing out and not interfering in this process. They chose not to take good advice.'

Congress MP Manickam Tagore endorsed his leader and said that the nation deserves the truth and Parliament deserves accountability.

'On May 17, 2025, the Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi asked a serious and specific question: 'How many Indian aircraft did we lose because Pakistan knew in advance?' This came after External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, in a recent interview, admitted that India informed Pakistan ahead of #OperationSindoor -- a sensitive military mission. In any parliamentary democracy, ministers are duty-bound to respond when the Opposition raises matters of national security. Yet, the EAM has remained silent. This silence raises grave questions: Why was Pakistan informed in advance? Who authorised this breach of operational secrecy? What consequences did our armed forces face because of it? This was not a routine decision. It was not a diplomatic formality. If Indian aircraft were lost because of foreknowledge given to the enemy -- this isn't a lapse. It's a betrayal. The nation deserves the truth. Parliament deserves accountability. And those responsible must be held to account,' Tagore posted on X.

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi in his post on X, 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?'

Calling this statement an 'utter misrepresentation of facts,' the Ministry of External Affairs had said that the EAM had stated that the government warned Pakistan at 'the early phase after Operation Sindoor's commencement' and not before it.

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. (ANI)