Kharge’s remarks came after India’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, acknowledged that Indian fighter jets were indeed downed by Pakistan, though he did not disclose exact figures. This followed a statement by BJP member and vocal Modi critic, Subrahmanyam Swamy, claiming Pakistan had shot down five Indian aircraft.
“The Modi government has misled the nation. The fog of war is now clearing,” Kharge wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter). He called for urgent accountability, stating that “only a Special Session of Parliament can address the serious questions that have now emerged.”
In the wake of the remarks made by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in Singapore in an interview, there are some very important questions which need to be asked.
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) May 31, 2025
These can only be asked if a Special Session of the Parliament is immediately convened.
The Modi Govt has misled the…
Kharge also demanded an independent review of India’s defense preparedness, similar to the Kargil Review Committee formed after the 1999 Kargil War.
Separately, Congress leader and Telangana Minister Uttam Reddy called for greater transparency from the government regarding the losses. A former air force pilot himself, Reddy emphasized that the downing of Indian fighter jets was no longer deniable. He pointed out that the CDS’s remarks echoed earlier indirect confirmations by Air Marshal Bharti and India’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO).
Read More: ‘India suffered initial losses’ in war with Pakistan, admits General Anil
According to reports, the Pakistan Air Force shot down six Indian fighter jets—three Rafales, one Su-30MKI, one Mirage 2000, and one MiG-29—within 40 minutes during a nighttime response operation on May 6–7. The strikes came in retaliation to Indian missile attacks on six locations in Pakistan, including mosques and civilian areas in Bahawalpur, Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Muridke, Sialkot, and Shakargarh.
The escalation continued until May 10, when U.S. intervention helped broker a ceasefire following mutual drone interceptions and retaliatory strikes on each other’s airbases.
The intense military exchanges mark one of the most significant air power confrontations between the two nations in recent history, with Pakistan reportedly achieving a clean aerial victory while not crossing into Indian airspace or engaging in dogfights.
