Pakistan Army spokesperson Asif Ghafoor has defended the Indian defence minister Rajnath Singh saying, "Nothing wrong in Rafale Puja as it goes by the religion."
Bengaluru: Defence minister Rajnath Singh has been facing a lot of flak for performing puja after receiving the first Rafale jet a few days ago.
In fact, senior Congress leader Mallikarjuna Kharge even went to the extent of saying it was a show-off.
But in what comes as a pleasant surprise, Rajnath Singh has received unexpected support from Pakistan!
Pakistan Army spokesperson Asif Ghafoor has defended the defence minister saying, "Nothing wrong in Rafale Puja as it goes by the religion."
In his tweet, he added, "Nothing wrong in #RafalePuja as it goes by the religion and that must be respected. Please, remember....it's not the machine alone which matters but competence, passion & resolve of the men handling that machine. Proud of our PAF Shaheens."
The remarks gain more significance in the light of the two neighbours not sharing a harmonious relationship in the wake of India abrogating Articles 370 and 35A.
Rajnath Singh, known to be a staunch Hindu, placed lemons and coconuts as part of rituals on the day of Vijayadashami, the day France handed over the fighter aircraft.
On the other hand, while senior Congress leaders condemned the performance of rituals, other members of the party like Sanjay Nirupam stood in support of the defence minister saying, not everyone in the Congress is an atheist.
Also Read: Congressmen fight it out over #RafalePuja
As confusion prevailed in the Congress over the way it handled the Rafale puja issue, Union home minister Amit Shah, in one of his rallies in Haryana, took a jibe at the Congress saying it doesn’t respect Indian values and culture.
While the hullabaloo continues over the issue, an unverified photograph of former defence minister Antony’s wife, allegedly putting a cross on INS Vikrant, during its induction ceremony was circulated.
On the day of the delivery, Rajnath Singh also sortied in the brand new aircraft.
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