In President Murmu Visit To Air Base, A Photo-Op With IAF Officer Pak Said It Captured

New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu, during her visit to the Air Force Station in Haryana, today, debunked Pakistani propaganda spread during Operation Sindoor by posing with an Air Force pilot whom Pakistani influencers and media had falsely claimed was captured during the military conflict between the two countries earlier this year.The picture released to the press showed President Droupadi Murmu with Sqn Ldr Shivangi Singh at Haryana Air Force base, which was used by India to strike Pakistan during the May operation.During Operation Sindoor, Pakistan media reports had falsely claimed that a fighter jet flown by Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh was shot down and that the air force officer was captured and treated as a prisoner of war. This

claim was debunked by Indian journalists, with a veteran defense journalist directly speaking to Sqn Ldr Singh, who was on duty at her airbase. A later fact-check from the Press Information Bureau also confirmed the rumors were fake.The picture was taken after President Murmu undertook a sortie in a Rafale fighter jet.Air Chief Marshal A P Singh also flew in a separate aircraft from the same airbase.Shortly before the aircraft took off at 11.27 am, the President waved from inside the jet.The President was also accorded a ceremonial guard of honour after she arrived at the Air Force Station this morning.

Rafale jets were used during Operation Sindoor, launched by India in response to the April 22 dastardly Pahalgam terror attack.President Murmu is the first President of India to take sortie in two fighter aircrafts of the Indian Air Force.In April 2023, Murmu, the supreme commander of the Indian armed forces has undertaken a sortie in Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter aircraft at the Tezpur Air Force Station, Assam.Former presidents A P J Abdul Kalam and Pratibha Patil had undertaken sorties in Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter aircraft at the Air Force Station, Lohegaon near Pune on June 8, 2006 and November 25, 2009, respectively.Manufactured by French aerospace major Dassault Aviation, Rafale fighter aircraft were formally inducted into the Indian Air Force in September 2020 at the Air Force Station, Ambala.The first five Rafale aircraft, which had arrived from France on July 27, 2020, were inducted in 17 Squadron, the 'Golden Arrows'.The Rafale jets were used in Operation Sindoor, which was launched on May 7 to destroy several terror infrastructures in territories controlled by Pakistan. The strikes triggered four days of intense clashes that ended with an understanding on stopping the military actions on May 10.With inputs from PTI