Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh. | Photo Credit: ANI

Chandigarh: In the wake of the dastardly terror attack in Pulwama on February 14 in which 40 Central Reserve Police Force jawans were martyred, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday called for a strong retaliation by India against terrorist activities originating in Pakistan, stressing that India is “fed up” of the killings of Indian security forces in Jammu and Kashmir.

Singh said that the actions against Pakistan could have military, diplomatic or economic implications, or all three, a PTI report said. “India wants it now,” Singh told media persons.

“No one is asking anyone to go to war, but these killings of soldiers are not a joke. Something has to be done. I’m fed up, the country is fed up,” the Punjab chief minister said, calling for a ‘tit-for-tat’ response to the brutal attack carried out by banned Pakistani terror organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed.

Singh, however, said that it is for the Indian government to decide on the future course of action but stressed that a stern response must be given to the nefarious attempt to destabilise peace in the Valley and the country.

“Pakistan can’t hold India to ransom just because they are a nuclear nation…even we are nuclear,” he said, according to the PTI report, adding that Pakistan was defeated by India in the Kargil war of 1999 though they had nuclear arsenal even back then.

The senior Congress leader further said that this is not the time for peace talks as the country is fuming over the coffins of innocent Indian soldiers and that talks can resume after a retaliation following the attack.

Singh, who is an ex-Army officer himself, emphasised on the need to destroy terror modules within Jammu and Kashmir. In an ‘eye for an eye’ reference, he said, “If they kill our soldiers, we have to do something. We should get 82 of them in response to our 41.”

Banned Pakistani terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed carried out a ghastly attack that killed 40 CRPF jawans on February 14 in Awantipora area of Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district. The attack took place around 3:30 pm after a suicide bomber, identified as local boy Adil Ahmad Dar, in a Mahindra Scorpio car loaded with 350 kilograms of explosives rammed into a convoy of 78 vehicles carrying over 2500 CRPF personnel on the Srinagar-Jammu Highway.