J&K: In attack on BJP, Shiv Sena wonders if India has a defence minister

In the wake of increased violence in Jammu and Kashmir, Bharatiya Janata Party ally Shiv Sena has now trained its guns on Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, asking whether "India really has a Defence Minister?".

Without naming Sitharaman, Shiv Sena—BJP’s ally in the Maharashtra state government and at the centre—attacked her as "a very weak and ineffective, faceless personality, who is at the helm, which is detrimental to the country".

"Our three services chiefs have always assured that the country's armed forces are forever prepared to tackle any challenges. We have full faith in the capabilities of our armed forces—but the leadership is inept," the Sena said in editorials in the party mouthpieces, Saamana and Dopahar Ka Saamana.

Otherwise, the Sena claimed, the terrorists would not have dared to kill Indian Army soldier Aurangzeb so brutally during the holy month of Ramzan.

Aurangzeb, a soldier of 4 J&K Light Infantry, was posted in Shopian and was proceeding to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr with his family in Rajouri on June 14. However, en route, he was kidnapped by terrorists who tortured him and shot him dead at Gussu village in Pulwama district.