India has adequate weapons to take on entire Pakistan: Top Army officer
In an interview to news agency ANI, Lieutenant General Sumer Ivan D'Cunha, Director General of Army Air Defence, pointed out that shifting the general headquarters (GHQ) of Pakistan Army, in face of any attack by India, will not much benefit the neighbouring country as all of it is within the range of India's military might.
'India has an adequate arsenal of weapons to take on Pakistan right across its depth. We are absolutely capable from our borders or even in depth where we can take on the entire Pakistan. The GHQ can move from Rawalpindi to KPK (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) or wherever they want to move, but they are all within range. So, they'll have to really find a deep hole,' D'Cunha said.
D'Cunha said that the Golden Temple authorities cooperated with the Army when they were explained about the looming threat. 'The Golden Temple hierarchy realised there was possibly a threat when it was explained to them. They allowed us to deploy guns, to protect… the Golden Temple's lights were switched off so that we could clearly visualise the drones as they were coming in. And that gave a us greater clarity in the sky because as and when you saw the light, you know what to engage.'
During a media briefing and live demonstration held in Amritsar, the Indian Army displayed debris of drones and missiles launched from Pakistan and intercepted by Indian air defence systems in the city. The Army also showed how advanced systems, including the upgraded L-70 Air Defence Guns and AKASH missile systems, were used to neutralise aerial threats aimed at critical sites, including the Golden Temple and cities across Punjab.
D'Cunha said the success of the operation is an answer to any speculation around Pakistan's prior knowledge about the operation. 'For any conflict to be successful, a surprise is the greatest element. And the very fact that… we got a hundred terrorists (in the precision strikes on May 7 Operation Sindoor), if not more, in their respective places where the camps were, that itself gives you an answer.'
Rahul Gandhi on Monday reiterated his remarks on Operation Sindoor, and said: 'EAM Jaishankar's silence isn't just telling – it's damning. So I'll ask again: How many Indian aircraft did we lose because Pakistan knew? This wasn't a lapse. It was a crime. And the nation deserves the truth.' This was his second post on the operation in the last three days. After his first post, the Ministry of External Affairs had called Gandhi's statement 'a misrepresentation of facts'.
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