Narendra Modi says he gave nod for Balakot air strike despite overcast conditions ‘as clouds could make Pakistani radars useless’ in detecting Indian warplanes 

Narendra Modi.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s, on Saturday, during an interview to a media channel said clouds and rain could “prevent” Pakistani radars from detecting Indian fighter jets. This prompted users on social media to make jokes on the prime minister.

In an interview by TV channel “News Nation”, on Saturday, Modi described the run-up to the air strikes on Balakot in Pakistan on February 26 saying, “The weather suddenly turned bad. There were clouds ... heavy rain. There was a doubt about whether we can go in the clouds. By and large the opinion of experts was what if we change the date? I had two issues in mind. One was secrecy ... Second, I said I am not someone who knows the science. I said there is so much cloud and rain (that) there could be a benefit. I have a raw wisdom, the clouds can benefit us too. We can escape the radar. Everyone was confused. Ultimately I said there are clouds... let’s proceed.”

Here is the clip of #EntireCloudCover pic.twitter.com/ePsAyQTmYi

— Ankur Bhardwaj (@Bhayankur) May 11, 2019

After this comment, the hashtag #EntireCloudCover started to trend on Twitter, while experts and Indian Air Force pilots expressed shock at the PM for such baseless remarks.

Some opposition leaders termed Modi’s comments  as “ridiculous” and “false”. The CPM has approached the Election Commission and alleged that Modi has revealed “operational details of a sensitive military mission” in a television interview with a purpose to influence voters.

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