Days ahead of the Supreme Court’s May 28 deadline for a preliminary report in the SIT probe against him, Madhya Pradesh minister Vijay Shah on Friday issued a fresh public apology, calling his remarks about Colonel Sofiya Qureshi a “linguistic mistake” and saying they were never intended to offend.
In a 45-second video posted on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle, Shah, hands folded, said, “I sincerely apologise to the entire Indian Army, sister Colonel Sofiya and all the countrymen.” He added, “The words spoken by me have hurt our community, religion, and people of the nation. This was a linguistic mistake by me... With folded hands, I again apologise to you.”
Notably, unlike his earlier apology that the Supreme Court dismissed as "crocodile tears", this statement made no conditional remarks like “if anyone is hurt,” indicating a more direct admission of guilt.
The video comes amid an ongoing Supreme Court-monitored investigation into his controversial speech made on May 11 during a public event while commenting on the Pahalgam terror attack. Shah had said, “They (terrorists) killed our Hindu brothers by making them remove their clothes. PM Modi ji responded by sending their (terrorists’) sister in an Army plane to strike them in their houses.”
He added further, “They (terrorists) made our sisters widows, so Modiji sent the sisters of their community to strip them and teach them a lesson.”
These remarks drew widespread criticism, with several opposition leaders, civil society groups, and Army veterans expressing outrage over what was seen as a communal and misogynistic statement involving a serving Indian Army officer, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, who had led briefings on Operation Sindoor, a major counter-terrorism operation in Pakistan and PoK.
Taking cognisance, the Supreme Court ordered the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) under the supervision of the Madhya Pradesh DGP, to be led by an IG-rank officer, with at least one woman officer of SP rank included in the team. The SIT is expected to submit its first report by May 28.
