Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said the "Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's teachings may have been at the core" of India's decision to conduct surgical strikes on terror launchpads along the Line of Control, PTI reported. Parrikar's statements on Monday follow his remarks praising the government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the operation that has been the subject of national debate.

At a function called "Know my Army" at Nirma University in Ahmedabad, Parrikar said, "I wonder, with the combination of the Prime Minister who comes from Mahatma Gandhi's home state, and I, the defence minister, coming from Goa, which never had any martial race, and surgical strikes...Maybe the RSS teaching was at the core, but this was quite a different kind of combination."

Parrikar said, "When the Indian Army says something we should believe it. I do not feel that anybody will seek proof from them [the Army] here in Ahmedabad." He added that there are some people who will not be convinced "even if definite proof is given." His statements are an apparent reference to several Opposition party leaders, including Congress' Sanjay Nirupam and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal questioning the veracity of the mission.

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Referring to the Indian Army as the best in the world, Parrikar said the nation's forces were giving a "befitting reply to ceasefire violations" by Pakistan. Hostilities between India and Pakistan have worsened since the September 18 attack on an Indian Army base in Jammu and Kashmir’s Uri sector.

While India believes Pakistan was involved in the attack, Islamabad maintains that there is no evidence to support the accusation. On September 29, the Indian Army had announced that it had carried out “surgical strikes" along the LoC.