"Isn’t the army under your control?" Old Modi Speech Resurfaces After Pahalgam Attack

Mumbai: "Isn’t the army under your control? Where are the terrorists getting weapons from? How are they entering the country? Aren’t the borders your responsibility?”
These piercing questions, once posed by Narendra Modi in 2012 while serving as Gujarat’s Chief Minister, have come back to haunt him in the wake of the recent Pahalgam terror attack. A video clip of his old speech has gone viral, with many on social media pointing out the striking irony.
The video captures Modi addressing a rally in Mumbai following a BJP National Executive meeting, where he launched a scathing attack on the then UPA government and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. In the fiery address, Modi had questioned the government’s failure to prevent terrorist incidents, highlighting the ease with which militants were infiltrating the country despite stringent central controls.
In the resurfaced footage, Modi can be heard saying:

Now, as the country mourns the victims of the Pahalgam attack, those very words are being reflected back at Modi himself. Critics and citizens alike have taken to social media, with some captions reading, "Is Modi now questioning his own government?" Posts sharing the video have flooded timelines, triggering a wave of commentary on political accountability.
Since assuming office as Prime Minister in 2014, Modi has faced the challenge of multiple high-profile terror attacks, including Pathankot (2016), Uri (2016), and Pulwama (2019)—each event testing India's security apparatus and provoking fierce national debates.
The reappearance of Modi’s 2012 speech has reignited broader discussions on national security, political rhetoric, and leadership responsibility. While the political landscape has changed dramatically over the past decade, many observers argue that the fundamental questions Modi raised then remain just as urgent today.
In an emotionally charged atmosphere following the Pahalgam tragedy—which claimed the lives of 26 Indian tourists​—the old video adds a poignant layer to the public discourse. It also serves as a reminder of how political narratives, once wielded as weapons, can sometimes turn inward.