99.9% supported me, only left-wing and Kashmiris opposed: GD Bakshi defends IIT-M speech

In the eye of the storm, after a student objected to his speech at an extramural lecture at IIT-Madras, General Bakshi said that he stands by his comments. Abhinav Surya, an IIT-M student had written a letter to the director saying: “I am still not able to digest the fact the institute has given a platform to such a speech filled with hatred, instigating violence among the students. A lecture that was heavily loaded with brewing enmity, inhumanity and glorification of brutality.”

Speaking to The News Minute, GD Bakshi defended his stance saying he had been asked to speak on the “Indian Army and National Security”. He said: “When somebody doesn’t stop hurting you, and you keep telling them to stop, what do you do? Pakistan has been receiving aid from China and when India tried to have a dialogue with China, China said its bond was deeper with Pakistan. So India should supply weapons to Vietnam, which is also being threatened by China.”

He also justified the use of nuclear weaponry saying India couldn’t afford to be ‘stabbed in the back’. He said: “We have repeatedly gotten stabbed in the back, and the leftist liberal ideology is used to promote sedition. Which nation can support its own break up? So many men have laid down their lives to fight in these wars, and we should respect them and do justice to them. I am amazed that this is called hate speech.”

Bakshi claimed that 99.9% of the crowd supported him, and only '10-12 Kashmiri students and other left wing liberals’ opposed him. He went on to slam Kashmiri students and leftist liberals saying they only try to ‘promote sedition in our campuses’. He added: “Free speech is fine, but tell me one American university that has candlelight vigils supporting Osama Bin Laden? We are the only ones who celebrate this. India is not represented by JNU – which has created an impression of collapse and weakness."