In the backdrop of air strikes at JeM camps in Balakot in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province by IAF on Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the entire nation has felt the absence of Rafale fighter planes after what has happened in the last few days.
Prime Minister Modi, who was speaking at the India Today Conclave here, said: "Today, the entire nation has felt the absence of Rafale. Had we got Rafale, the result today could have been different. Initially, people were doing 'Swaarthneeti' on it. Today they are doing politics on the same. The country has suffered a lot because of this."
The Prime Minister also alleged that the opposition is questioning India's security forces at a time when the entire world is with us.
"When the entire country is with our forces, there are people who are questioning forces. The world is united to fight against terrorism, and at that crucial time people are questioning the forces," he said.
Sharpening his attack on the opposition, Prime Minister said: "People in their quest to be anti-Modi have become anti-India."
"I want to ask these people do you trust our forces or do you trust those who carry out attacks on our soil. Many Modis will come and go but India is going to be here forever," he said.
He added: "If you want to oppose Modi, you are free to do so. But do not oppose what is in favour of the nation. They should be careful that in this stubbornness of being anti-Modi, they may end up giving support to terrorists like Hafiz Saeed and others."
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Hitting out at the opposition further, the Prime Minister claimed that the security forces had asked for 1.86 lakh bullet-proof jackets but till the time his government came to power, not one jacket had been purchased.
"I would like to inform you that in 2009 the forces had asked for 1.83 lakh bullet-proof jackets but not one jacket was bought till the time we came to power. This is shameful. In our tenure, we have got 2.30 lakh bulletproof jackets," he said.
Accusing the opposition of being corrupt, Prime Minister Modi said: "There many so many defence scams, which took place during their era. They began with Jeeps and later graduated to weapons, submarines, and so on. In the process, the defence sector suffered immensely."
Elaborating on how India benefitted during his tenure, he said: "The entire world is trying to understand us. India today is fearless. There is a sense of fear among anti-nationals whether they are in India or outside India."
"I think such a fear is good. We are committed to taking decisions in favour of the country. India is changed and transformed and no one can dare threaten us," said Prime Minister Modi.
Alleging the previous governments were only interested in deals and dole, he said: "Our 55 months and their 55 years have had a different kind of approach. They believed in token approach, whereas we believe in a total approach. Those who ruled the nation for many years had an interest in only two things-doles and deals.