Congress Demands Transparency on Operation Sindoor Losses, Citing CDS Anil Chauhan’s Remarks

The Congress party on Saturday continues to pressure the government for more clarity in how many of India’s military assets were lost in Operation Sindoor.

Using quotes from senior military officials, Telangana's Minister of Irrigation and former Air Force fighter pilot Uttar Kumar Reddy said it was time for the government to disclose how many Indian aircraft were shoot down by Pakistan.

“The fact that the fighter aircraft were shot down is something the government needs to stop denying. The CDS himself mentioned that. Earlier, Air Marshal Bharti had mentioned it indirectly in his briefing report, along with the DGMO… The whole country must realise today that for some reason, the GoI was not upfront with whatever happened," said Reddy.

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Earlier today, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan became the first official to acknowledge Indian aircraft were lost during Operation Sindoor.

General Chauhan made those comments to Reuters at the Shangri-La security dialogue in Singapore today, and stated that the number of planes destroyed was not important, but “what was important is, why these losses occurred, and what we'll do after that.” Air Marshal A.K. Bharti, the Director General of Air Operations, had previously stated in a press conference that “losses are a part of combat.”

Reddy agreed with General Chauhan that mistakes should be recognised and corrected.

“That is what Shri Rahul Gandhi said in the first instance, against which lots of negative campaigns have been done by the BJP”, added the Congress leader.

Rahul Gandhi's appetite for more information on India's losses has brought on a backlash from the BJP. The BJP blasted Gandhi as "irresponsible" and "Nishan-e-Pakistan" through the party’s national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia.

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Congress are not the only ones concerned about India losing aircraft in Operation Sindoor, the French aviation giant Rafale is concerned about how it's product performed while in actual combat in Indian hands.

The French Minister of Defense said on Thursday that “in regard of the Rafale, this issue is of course of primary importance to us,” and that they were in contact with India to gain better insight.

If one of the Rafale fighter jets was in fact shot down, it would be the first operational loss in the almost two decades of operational service. Pakistan had already claimed that they had shot down 6 Indian aircraft, while India had also previously denied that number.

As per Mujib Mashal of the New York Times, the real combat loss was between 2-3 which was corroborated by Indian and Western officials.

“The GoI must be more transparent on every significant event that took place throughout the Indo-Pak operation," concluded Reddy.

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