'Father Dropped Bombs In...': Sachin Pilot 'Fact Checks' Amit Malviya Over Mizoram Air Raid Claim

Malviya alleged that Rajesh Pilot, as pilot, dropped bombs on Mizoram's capital Aizawl in 1966 while uploading a footage from a news station.

Senior Congress Leader Sachin Pilot.

Source : PTI

Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Tuesday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) IT cell chief Amit Malviya for statements against his father Rajesh Pilot. Malviya alleged that Rajesh Pilot, as pilot, dropped bombs on Mizoram's capital Aizawl in 1966 while uploading a footage from a news station. Taking to X (formelry known as Twitter), Amit Malviya stated: “Rajesh Pilot and Suresh Pilots were flying the Indian Air Force planes which dropped bombs on Mizoram's capital Aizawl on March 5, 1966. Later, both of them became Congress MPs and later ministers. Indira Gandhi felicitated those conducting airstrikes on fellow citizens in the north east through political opportunities."

Rebuking Malviya's claims as "wrong facts," Sachin Pilot tweeted: “You have the wrong dates, wrong facts…Yes, as an Indian Air Force pilot, my late father did drop bombs. But that was on erstwhile East Pakistan during the 1971 Indo-Pak war and not as you claim, on Mizoram on the 5th of March 1966. He was commissioned into the IAF only on 29th October 1966! (Certificate attached) Jai hind and a happy Independence Day."

.@amitmalviya - You have the wrong dates, wrong facts…
Yes, as an Indian Air Force pilot, my late father did drop bombs. But that was on erstwhile East Pakistan during the 1971 Indo-Pak war and not as you claim, on Mizoram on the 5th of March 1966.
He was commissioned into the… https://t.co/JfexDbczfk pic.twitter.com/Lpe1GL1NLB

— Sachin Pilot (@SachinPilot) August 15, 2023

Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated in his response to a no-confidence vote in the Lok Sabha last week that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had utilised the IAF against Mizoram. “Weren’t citizens of Mizoram our citizens? Even today, Mizoram mourns on March 5 every year. It hasn’t forgotten till now. And Congress has hidden this fact from the country,” PM Modi had stated.