NEW DELHI: The BJP on Sunday accused the Congress leadership of maintaining “silence” over Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar, who was seriously injured after his Omani co-pilot allegedly attacked him in the cockpit of a Dubai-Tel Aviv flydubai flight, while also targeting the opposition party over its latest appointments in Uttar Pradesh.Addressing reporters, BJP spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi said the incident was an occasion of national pride and questioned why senior Congress leaders had not publicly acknowledged Machchhar’s brave actions.“For India, this is an occasion of great pride, but there are also some occasions that are a matter of shame. Not a single word, not a single post, and not a single press statement has come from the Congress family for Captain Smit Machchhar. This raises a serious question,” Trivedi said.Machchhar was attacked on Wednesday aboard flydubai flight FZ1073, which was carrying 174 people from Dubai to Tel Aviv. Despite being seriously injured, he managed to open the cockpit door, allowing others to intervene and helping prevent the aircraft from being brought down. The plane was subsequently diverted safely to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.Also Read| ‘Free the terrorist’: Passengers claim flydubai crew told them to release co-pilot after attack – reportTrivedi contrasted the Congress leadership’s alleged silence with the response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and leaders abroad, who praised Machchhar act of bravery.The BJP leader then turned his criticism towards Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, alleging that the party’s political calculations had influenced its response.“Rahul Gandhi, the ‘wayward prince’ of the Gandhi family who was once so distressed over Gaza, seems to be so ‘terrified of the vote bank’ that he is not able to utter a single word to hail the valour of Machchhar,” Trivedi said.
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He also accused the Congress of “silent support to terrorism” and demanded that its top leadership explain its position.Trivedi linked the attack to the Congress’s recent organisational changes in Uttar Pradesh. On Friday, the party appointed Aradhana Mishra-Mona as state Congress president and Saharanpur MP Imran Masood as working president, replacing Ajay Rai as the state chief.“On the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, who is a symbol of peace and non-violence, Congress has appointed Imran Masood, who is infamous for his remark that he will ‘chop Modi into pieces’, as the party’s Uttar Pradesh unit working president,” Trivedi said.He also alleged that Mishra had previously stopped party workers from raising the “Bharat Mata ki Jai” slogan.“This demonstrates how vast the gap has become between Mahatma Gandhi and the Gandhis of today,” he added.