On July 2, 1999, the Congress (I) informed every major newspaper in India that the BJP government was responsible for the Kargil conflict and that they had misled the people. The Congress charged the government of ``lying to the people''. According to the Congress "the truth was concealed in the files lying with the Government" which supposedly demolish the Government's statement that the first indications of the intrusions came as late as May 6 this year. The charges were supported primarily by two claims

The Congress(I) spokesman, Mr. Kapil Sibal, gave out the reference number of a letter supposedly written on August 25 last year by the then Brigadier in charge of Kargil to the Chief of the Army Staff, which warned of ``enhanced threat perception'' on the LoC. The letter (reference number BRIGCOAS:124/GSD/VIFDT 25/8/98) expressed concern at the situation and requested that steps be taken to confirm the activities across the LoC, Mr. Sibal claimed. But according to the Congress, "no action was taken."
Next the Congress released copies of a statement made in the Lok Sabha on August 4 last year by Mr. George Fernandes, Defence Minister, in which he had supposedly said that infiltration had been detected in the Kargil and Batalik sectors which were backed by the Pakistan Government and the ISI. ``If Mr. Fernandes had this information, why instead of maintaining vigilance on the border and taking care of the situation in Kargil, was the Government embracing Pakistan's Prime Minister, Mr. Nawaz Sharif.'' according to Mr. Sibal "the failure was not the Army's but at the decision- making level in the government. From August last year, right up to December, the Government had received several communications warning of the infiltration across the LoC. The Congress(I) would be releasing these letters from time to time."
Let's see if any of Mr. Sibal's "revelations" hold any truth.

The alleged letter from the Brigadier of Kargil to the Chief of Army Staff:

On July 24, 1999, the Indian Army categorically denied that any letter written by an Infantry Brigade Commander on the Kargil incursions had ever been received by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS). This is a direct refutation of Congress's allegation. Furthermore the army statement also stated that : "It would be pertinent to point out that as per prevalent practice in the army, official correspondence initiated by a brigade headquarters is not addressed to the COAS or army headquarters directly. These are addressed to the next higher headquarters in the chain of command I.E. a divisional headquarters,"
Which leads us to only one logical conclusion, that Congress has concocted such a letter as a HOAX to fool the Indian public and deliberately and maliciously defame the government. Contrary to Congress's first allegation against the BJP government, it is Congress (I) which has lied to the people.

The statement made by George Fernandes in Lok Sabha on August 4, 1998:

Mr. Fernandes' exact statement to the Lok Sabha on August 4 last year, was that "Pakistan, frustrated by the fact that militancy was on the decline in the Kashmir Valley, was targeting not only Army posts but also civilian areas with Batalik, Kargil, Kanzalwan, Tangdhar, Keren and Uri as the main targets." He had assured the House that the security forces guarding the border in Jammu and Kashmir were in fine mettle and ``in full preparedness to meet every eventuality that may arise''. A media briefing held by the Defence Ministry a week after this statement had also stated that ``the situation is well contained and contrary to Pakistani media reports there are no war clouds''. The Ministry's perception was that Pakistan tried to escalate the situation to coincide with important events in order to internationalize the Kashmir issue. Citing previous instances, the Ministry had then observed that the escalation in July-end last year was in view of the SAARC summit in Colombo and the meeting between the two Prime Ministers. On July 27 and 28 last year, Pakistan had resorted to heavy firing of artillery and mortar in Batalik and Kargil, leading to the deaths of 10 Army soldiers, six BSF constables and 31 civilians.
The conclusion of the Lok Sabha at that point had been that "Diplomatic and military channels should be effectively used to prevent such incidents"

Which leads us to a second logical conclusion, the fact that Pakistani terrorists were targeting the Kargil, Uri, Keren, Batalik, Kanzalwan and Tangdhar sectors was well known to everyone in Lok Sabha INCLUDING the pious Congress leaders who are now crying Wolf. Why did the Congress not express its concern for India's borders then? Why did they not take the government to task and demand that it protect the borders of India? Why did the leader of the Congress advise that "diplomacy" was the best solution to the current Pakistani problem?

Furthermore, since the Congress is accusing the BJP government of not having acted on the information that they had regarding infiltration into Kashmir border districts, it would be pertinent to explore exactly how far back, the information that Pakistan planned to intrude into Indian territory intrusions, was known to the Indian government.

In 1988, Rajiv Gandhi of the Congress (I) was the Prime Minister of India. During April of 1988, India's intelligence Agency RAW, reported to the Rajiv Gandhi government that Pakistan's ISI led by General Zia was planning to disrupt the peace in Kashmir. RAW released top secret reports of the meeting between Zia and ISI leaders during which a detailed plan of attack against India was discussed. The entire operation to usurp Kashmir was code named "Op Topac". Here are some blood curdling excerpts from President Zia's speech:

"Gentlemen, As you know, due to our preoccupation in Afghanistan in the service of Islam, I have not been able to put these plans to you earlier. Let there be no mistake, however, that our aim remains quite clear and firm - and that is the Liberation of the Kashmir Valley - our Muslim Kashmiri brothers cannot be allowed to stay with India for any length of time now. In the past we have opted for hamhanded military operations and therefore failed. So, as I have mentioned before, we will now keep our military option for the last moment as a coup de grace, if and when necessary.

Phase 1

In the first phase, which may if necessary, last a couple of years, we will assist our Muslim Kashmiri brothers to get hold of the power apparatus of the State by political subversion and intrigue. We must therefore ensure that certain "favored politicians" (Read Farouqe Abdullah) from the ruling elite be selected who will collaborate with us in subverting all effective organs of the state. The operation named "Op Topac" will be as follows:

(a) "A low level insurgency against the regime so that it is under siege but does not collapse as we would not yet want central rule imposed by Delhi

(b) We plant our chosen men in all the key positions; they will subvert the police forces, financial institutions, the communications network and other important organizations.

(c) We whip up anti-Indian feelings among the students on Islamic issues, so that we can enlist their active support for rioting and anti-government demonstrations.

(d) In collaborations with Sikh extremists, create chaos and terror in Jammu to divert attention from the Valley at critical junctures and discredit the regime in Hindus' own minds.

Phase 2

(a) Exert maximum pressure on the Siachen, KARGIL and RAJOURI, Poonch sectors to force the Indian Army to deploy reserve formation outside the main Kashmir Valley.

(b) Attack and destroy base depots and headquarters located at Srinagar, Kupwara, Pattan, Baramulla, Bandipur and Chowkiwalla by covert action at a given time.

(c) Finally a special force under selected retired officers belonging to Azad Kashmir (Pakistan Occupied Kashmir), with the hard core consisting of Afghans, will be ready to attack and destroy AIRFIELDS, RADIO STATIONS, block Banihal Tunnel and the KARGIL-LEH HIGHWAY.

Phase 3

(a) Detailed plans for the liberation of Kashmir Valley and establishment of an independent Islamic state in the third phase will follow. By the grace of Allah, we have also managed to accumulate large stocks of modern arms and ammunition from US consignments intended for Afghan Mujahideen.

(b) Preparation for this phase must be made by means of a big military exercise- the biggest ever held in Pakistan.

(c) I need not emphasize any further that a deliberate and objective assessment of the situation must be ensured at each stage, otherwise a stalemate will follow with no good for Pakistan.

These murderous designs of Pakistan to sever Kashmir from India were well known to Congress as far back as April, 1988!! In fact the first phase of Operation "Op-Topac" was already put into action in mid-1988, while Rajiv Gandhi of the CONGRESS was Prime Minister of India.

Now it is the turn of Congress to answer some very hard and real questions.

The RAW report about Pakistan's Operation "Op-Topac" was submitted to Rajiv Gandhi as early as April, 1988. Why did the Congress government not make this Report Public??
Having received so much ample warning, why was NOTHING done by Congress to stop Pakistan from carrying out the Initial Phases of Op-Topac?
Having been fully aware of the impending attacks on Kargil, Leh, Batalik and many of the sectors which have been targeted by Pakistanis in recent months, why did not Congress inform and warn later Indian governments about Pakistan's evil designs?
Knowing fully well the extent of operations planned by ISI, why did the subsequent Congress supported regimes not ensure adequate equipment and supplies for the Indian soldiers over the past decade?
On October 30, 1997 Pakistan was busy bombarding Kargil, Rajouri and Poonch with shells and gunfire, even as United Front's Prime Minister I.K. Gujral was busy hugging Nawaz Sharif and preaching his doctrine of "Peace", why did the Congress support such a government??
Even after the Kargil conflict of recent months, why was a check of Rs 11 lakh made in the name of the Army Welfare Relief Fund, and given to Congress by the Delhi food and civil supplies minister Yoganand Shastri later converted in the name of the Congress Party's president Fund??? Why is the money intended for our brave Jawans who are sacrificing their life at India's borders, going into the coffers of the Congress President??
There is only ONE answer to all of the above questions and any other queries that a normal concerned citizen of India would have for the Congress.

That the Congress(I) is working AGAINST the national interests of India, that Congress(I) WANTS Pakistan to gain control of Kashmir, that it is Congress(I) and not any other political party of India, which for DECADES has been robbing, cheating and lying to the people of India. Whether the situation was the result of criminal negligence or willful participation of the Congress in not hindering Pakistan's evil designs, the fact remains that it is Congress which has brought India to this point.

It is outrageous that the political party which has created, fostered, nurtured and brought the Kashmir situation to a boiling point, to suit its own malicious purposes, is trying to dictate the "truth" to the Indian Public. The Central government has ordered a complete probe into the Kargil conflict and no doubt, the past role of Congress in deliberately ignoring the issue and misinforming the public, will be dealt with in detail through the report. It is time that the Congress (I) of India stopped pointing fingers of blame at others and took a look at its own sordid responsibility for the situation in Kashmir. It is Congress and Congress alone which must bear the responsibility of the murders of hundreds of our brave Jawans and innocent civilians in Kashmir and other areas of India which were attacked by the ISI.

In the end, it will be upto the citizens of India alone to judge whether such treasonous behavior on the part of a political party deserves to be rewarded or punished.