Rajnath Singh has claimed India has conducted 3 airstrikes across the border in the past 5 years. (Image: PTI)

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has made a startling claim that in the past five years, Indian forces have thrice crossed the borders, entered foreign territory and successfully conducted air strikes. However, he added that he will talk about two of the instances, not the third.

Speaking at a rally in Karnataka, Rajnath Singh said on Saturday, "In the past five years, we have crossed the border thrice and our men have successfully conducted air strikes. I will give you information about two of those incidents, but not the third."

Rajnath Singh was addressing a gathering of BJP's Shakti Kendra office bearers convention in Mengaluru.

Rajnath Singh then went on to cite the 2016 surgical strikes and the latest Balakot airstrike in Pakistan.

"One time you saw in Uri, terrorists who came from Pakistan killed 17 of our soldiers, who were sleeping at night in a cowardly attack. After that, our soldiers also decided. Whatever happened after that you too know it very well, I need not tell... now you are seeing.

First attack happened. second one was air strike... happened after Pulwama attack. I won't give you information about the third one," Singh said without elaborating.

#WATCH Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh at a public rally in Mangaluru: Pichle 5 varsho mein, teen baar apni seema ke bahar jaa kar hum logon ne air strike kar kaamyaabi haasil ki hai. Do ki jaankari apko dunga, teesri ki nahi dunga. #Karnataka pic.twitter.com/NZKeJPulrS ANI (@ANI) March 9, 2019





In the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attack on February 14, the Indian Air Force (IAF) conducted pre-emptive non-military airstrikes in Pakistan's Balakot to destroy one of the biggest Jaish-e-Mohammed terror camps.

Before that, in 2016, the Indian Army conducted surgical strikes across the Line of Control (LoC) months after the Uri terror attack and destroyed terror launchpads along the border.

As Rajnath Singh said he won't mention the third incident of "air strike", the crowd broke into a round of applause, lauding the minister's claims.

Singh asserted that "it is no more a weak India... leaving aside all our differences, we have to stand together. Time and again India has done this."

Twelve days after the Pulwama terror attack, IAF fighter jets entered the Pakistani territory to avenge the deaths of 40 CRPF personnel who were killed in the attack.

While IAF officials have refrained from quantifying the number of terrorists who were killed in the airstrike in Balakot, several BJP leaders, including party president Amit Shah, have declared that at least 250 terrorists were killed.