"People of the country want action against terrorism": Ajay Rai stands firm on his 'nimbu-mirchi' statement on Rafale fighter jet

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 5 (ANI): A day after he stoked controversy by displaying a toy plane with Rafale written on it and adorned with lemon and chillies, Uttar Pradesh Congress leader Ajay Rai on Monday has doubled down on his remarks stating that he presented the fighter jet symbolically because the country wants to see action being taken against perpetrators of the Pahalgam terror attack.
"I'm just asking when Rafale will do its job," Rai said. The Uttar Pradesh Congress chief said that while the Congress stands with the government, the government has to make a decision, and when it does not, people will question and criticise it.
Rai had on Sunday criticised the central government for their "big talk and no action" against those responsible for the Pahalgam terror attack, saying that they purchased Rafale fighter jets which are lying in hangars with "nimbu mirchi" (lemon and chillies) hanging on them.
"It is time to give a reply to the ones who killed our people in Pahalgam...When the Defence Minister went to take delivery of Rafale, he hung lemon-chillies on Rafale. I just wanted to open his eyes and show him that the people of the country want action against terrorism... Strictest action should be taken against the terrorists, and the people giving them support should be finished", Ajay Rai told ANI.
The Congress leader alleged that those in power, be it Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, or Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, are confusing the country. The tears of the family members of Pahalgam attack victims have dried up, but still no action has been taken by the government, he alleged.
Ajay Rai said a plane like Rafale still stands with lemon and chilli, but the people in power are not doing anything in the name of action. He said that Congress is entirely with the government on the issue of taking action against Pakistan, but the government is not taking any action.
Further, Rai said that after the Pulwama attack, he had asked where the RDX came from and who carried out the explosion, but a report on the incident is yet to come.
Several BJP leaders have lashed out against Rai's remarks. BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala took to X to post "Rahul Gandhi's close aide Ajay Rai has now managed to make it to the headlines of Pakistan thanks to his utterances and antics on Rafale."
"Channi, Priyank Kharge, RJD MP Sudhakar Singh, Ajay Rai -- the attack on manobal (morale) of our Forces is not a sanyog (coincidence) but sahyog (collaboration) with Pakistan," Poonawala said.
BJP leader Pradeep Bhandari also took to his X platform to post, "Rahul Gandhi's Close aide Ajay Rai mocks our forces! Congress today has become the Pakistani Congresss and the Spokesperson of Asif Munir's Pakistan in India!."
Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh Congress chief also spoke on the hearing, which is set to take place in the Allahabad High Court concerning Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's citizenship.
Rai said that Rahul Gandhi is the son of his soil, whose family members have sacrificed their lives for the country, and doesn't need any certificate. (ANI)