Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said had India possessed Rafale fighter jets earlier the IAF would not have needed to enter Balakot in Pakistan to hit the terror camps.
Addressing a poll rally for BJP’s Mira Bhayander nominee Narendra Mehta in Maharashtra’s Thane district neighbouring Mumbai, Singh defended performing ‘shastra puja’ while taking delivery of the first Rafale jet in France recently. “Had we possessed Rafale fighter jets we would not have required to enter Balakot and launch a strike. We could have struck at Balakot while sitting in India,” he said.
Singh reiterated that the fighter planes were meant only for self-defence and not for aggression.
On a controversy surrounding the “shastra puja”, Singh said, “I wrote ‘Om’ on the plane, broke a coconut (as per tradition). Om depicts never-ending Universe”.