Cong ex-servicemen wing demands sacking of MP ministers for 'insulting Army'

Bhopal: The state Congress' ex-servicemen wing on Saturday accused CM Mohan Yadav of shielding two cabinet ministers accused of making derogatory remarks about the Indian Army.

Party ex-servicemen wing president Maj Gen Shyam Shrivastava (retd) and Brigadier Arun Pandey (retd) alleged that if the chief minister does not act against cabinet minister Vijay Shah and deputy CM Jagdish Devda, it means that he too was insulting the Army.

"In the armed forces, the soldiers are proud of their officers and especially their commanding officers, and the army is also proud of its officers," Maj Gen Shrivastava said at a press conference here. "Sofiya Qureshi is a full colonel, who has given her best to the army, to her country. If she was selected for the army briefing, then she is an outstanding officer. Also, she is a second-generation officer of the Indian Army; her father was also in the army," he said.

The retired major general argued that after Shah, there was another comment from deputy CM Devda about the Army "bowing down at the feet of PM Modi". "Devda ji, the President is the supreme commander of the three armies, and the Indian Army does not work for any particular person; it works for the govt. Whether the govt is of BJP, Congress, or Janata Dal, it does not matter to the army. The army works only with the elected govt as per the constitution. If the Indian Army can bow down to anyone, it is only our Bharat Mata. By making the army bow down to Modi ji, you have crossed all limits of disrespect," he said.

He said people who insult the army should be removed from the ministerial post immediately. "While the serving army can give a befitting reply to the enemies of the country, it cannot take direct action against those who insult the country. For this, it has to rely on the govt, administration, police, and court," he said. "But we, the ex-servicemen, will not tolerate the insult being done to the armed forces," the retired major general said.