DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann Tuesday attacked the BJP over Operation Sindoor, accusing it of seeking votes in the name of 'sindoor' (vermillion) and asked if it had started a 'one nation, one husband' scheme. He was talking to reporters after chairing a cabinet meeting here.

When asked about the BJP allegedly seeking votes in the name of Operation Sindoor for the Ludhiana West assembly bypoll, Mann said, "(They are) seeking votes in the name of sindoor. They have turned sindoor into a joke. Haven't you seen that?"

"If they come to your house (with sindoor), will you apply 'sindoor' in the name of Modi. Is it a 'one nation, one husband' scheme?" he asked.

The bypoll to Ludhiana West assembly seat in Punjab will take place on June 19 and the counting will be held on June 23.

Meanwhile, the Punjab BJP slammed Mann for his 'one nation, one husband' remarks, saying the chief minister has "crossed all limits".

"There is no BJP activity sending sindoor to every household. The term Operation Sindoor was used because terrorists were killing Hindus after checking their religion --? sindoor was a marker they used to identify women," said BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Balliawal.

"This operation was about terrorism, martyrdom, and the protection of Indian lives. But how would Bhagwant Mann, a man with zero sensitivity, understand that? A man who mocks the Indian Army, insults Veer Naris, turns every sacred symbol into a joke, such a person will never understand the value of sindoor, which carries sacrifice, love.

This isn't humour," said Balliawal in a post on X.

Under Operation Sindoor, the Indian armed forces carried out pre-dawn missile strikes on May 7 on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, including the Jaish-e-Mohammad stronghold of Bahawalpur and Lashkar-e-Taiba's base in Muridke, in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 lives.

(editor@dailyworld.in)