‘No Response’: Jaishankar Lambasts UPA Govt Over 26/11 Mumbai Attacks

New Delhi, India: External Affairs Minister S Jaishnkar on Sunday hit out at the previous UPA government for its lack of response following the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, which claimed 166 lives. Speaking about the incident, Jaishankar shed light on the need for India to avoid a repeat of such inaction. “We should not have a repeat of what happened in Mumbai. There was a terror attack, and there was no response. Mumbai is a symbol of counter-terrorism for India and the world,” he stated, as reported by PTI.Jaishankar recalled that during India's time on the UN Security Council, the country chaired the counter-terrorism committee, holding a meeting in the same hotel that was targeted during the attacks. He asserted that India is now a leader in the fight against terrorism, stating, “When we talk of zero tolerance against terror, it is clear that when somebody does something, there will be a response.”This isn’t the first time Jaishankar has addressed the 26/11 attacks. In April, he revealed that the NSA of the then UPA government wrote that after extensive deliberation, they opted for inaction, fearing that the cost of a military response against Pakistan would be too high.“After the Mumbai attacks, the national security advisor (NSA) of the previous UPA government wrote that ‘we sat, we debated. We considered all the options. Then we decided to do nothing and the justification was that we felt that the cost of attacking Pakistan was more than not doing so," Jaishankar said.The BJP has consistently criticized the Congress party for failing to take decisive action against those responsible for the attacks. The 26/11 terror attack On November 26, 2008, ten terrorists from the Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba carried out coordinated assaults across Mumbai, including at the Taj Palace Hotel and the Oberoi Trident, resulting in widespread devastation.Ajmal Kasab, the only surviving attacker, was captured and executed in 2012.

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‘No Response’: Jaishankar Lambasts UPA Govt Over 26/11 Mumbai Attacks

Jaishankar recalled that during India's time on the UN Security Council, the country chaired the counter-terrorism committee, holding meeting in the same hotel.

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