‘One Nation, One Husband?’: Bhagwant Mann’s Bizarre Jibe at Op Sindoor Sparks Outrage

GG News Bureau
Chandigarh, 3rd June: Punjab Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Bhagwant Mann has sharply criticised the BJP’s “Operation Sindoor” campaign, calling it a mockery and questioning if it was a “one nation, one husband” scheme. Speaking to the media ahead of the Ludhiana bypoll, Mann said, “BJP is seeking votes in the name of Operation Sindoor. These people have turned ‘sindoor’ into a joke. They are sending sindoor to every home. Will you now apply ‘sindoor’ in (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi’s name?”

The BJP had recently launched a nationwide campaign to highlight the Narendra Modi government’s success in Operation Sindoor, India’s retaliatory airstrike following the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians. Reports had claimed the party planned to distribute vermilion (sindoor) to every household as part of the campaign, but the Press Information Bureau later dismissed these claims.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also criticised the choice of the name “Operation Sindoor,” calling it politically motivated. After PM Modi’s visit to West Bengal, she said, “The name ‘Operation Sindoor’ was their brainchild. It was politically motivated.

The Prime Minister came here with the motive of political propaganda.” Banerjee added, “First, he described himself as a tea-seller. Then, he described himself as a guard. Now he has come here to sell Sindoor.”

The name “Operation Sindoor” holds symbolic meaning—‘sindoor’ refers to the vermilion applied by Hindu women as a symbol of marriage. The operation’s name was chosen to honour the loss of women whose husbands were killed during the Pahalgam terror attack. The Indian Army’s official image of the operation featured the word “Sindoor,” with one ‘O’ depicted as a bowl of vermilion spilling over, representing the brutal loss faced by 25 widows. The image was captioned: “Justice is served. Jai Hind.”