Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 19 (ANI): Reacting to Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi's tweet asking how many aircraft we lost, Shiv Sena leader Shrikant Shinde on Monday said that the Congress leader is more 'interested' in doing politics than in patriotism.

'When it is time for war, the nation is united and backs the Armed Forces. I think Rahul Gandhi is more interested in doing politics than in patriotism. On one hand, the entire nation is united and standing with the armed forces and on the other hand, people like Rahul Gandhi are demoralising the Armed Forces. I think it is essential to rise above politics and think for the nation. They object to their MP, Shashi Tharoor, leading an MP delegation. In such a situation, when the entire Opposition should come together, it is very unfortunate that Congress has such a stand,' Shrikant Shinde said.

Calling it an 'utter misrepresentation of facts,' the Ministry of External Affairs rebutted Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's accusations against External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar that the government 'informed Pakistan' before the start of 'Operation Sindoor.'

According to the XP Division of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Jaishankar had said that India had warned Pakistan at an early phase after Operation Sindoor's commencement.

XP Division, MEA stated, 'EAM had stated that we had warned Pakistan at the start, which is clearly the early phase after Op Sindoor's commencement. This is being falsely represented as being before the commencement. This utter misrepresentation of facts is being called out.'

The MEA's response came after Rahul Gandhi posted a video on X, in which Jaishankar is seen speaking to the reporters on Thursday following the inauguration of the Honduras Embassy in Delhi. Gandhi alleged wrongdoing by the government.

In a post on X, Gandhi stated, 'Informing Pakistan at the start of our attack was a crime. EAM has publicly admitted that GOI did it. 1. Who authorised it? 2. How many aircraft did our air force lose as a result?'

Speaking to reporters on Thursday after the inauguration of the Honduras Embassy in Delhi, he said, 'It is clear who wanted cessation of firing. We achieved the goals which we set out to do by destroying the terrorist infrastructure. Since key goals were achieved, I think we reasonably took the position, because even at the start of the operation, we had sent a message to Pakistan saying we are striking at terrorist infrastructure and not military, and the military has an option to stand out and not interfere.'

'They chose not to take that good advice. Once they got badly hit on the morning of May 10. The satellite pictures show how much damage we did and what little damage they did. It is clear who wanted cessation of firing,' he added.

Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor in the early hours of May 7, targeting nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), leading to the death of over 100 terrorists affiliated with terror outfits like the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM).

India's military action came in response to the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22, which claimed the lives of 26 people and injured several others. (ANI)