A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi celebrated Diwali with soldiers of Indian Armed Forces in the Nowshera district of Jammu and Kashmir donning a military uniform, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh asked if any civilian or non-army personnel can dress up in army uniform.

He further sought clarification from Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

In a tweet, the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister asked, “Can any Civilian, a non Army person dress up in Army Uniform? Would Gen Rawat or Raksha Mantri ji please clarify.”

PM Modi started wearing a military uniform from 2017 onwards 

The Prime Minister has been celebrating Diwali with Indian soldiers since 2016 and used to appear in civilian attire but from 2017 onwards, he started donning Indian Army combat dress without any insignia.

This is not the first the Congress has slammed the Prime Minister for appearing in a military dress.

Last year, the grand old party had called him an “impersonator PM” and also questioned his decision to wear a military uniform during his visit to a Border Security Force (BSF) camp in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan on Diwali.

‘He is neither the chief of the army nor the officer’

Congress leader Tariq Anwar took a swipe at the PM saying he is adept at changing dresses as per the occasion.

“Sometimes he dresses up like a tea-seller, sometimes wearing a suit worth 10 lakhs, sometimes as a watchman, sometimes a pradhan sevak chief and sometimes as a sadhu and a soldier,” Anwar tweeted in Hindi.

The youth wing of Congress posted a picture of Modi in an Army uniform and asked how appropriate it is for a politician to wear the prestigious uniform among Army personnel.

“He is neither the chief of the army nor the officer. How appropriate is it for a civilian leader to wear an army uniform?” the caption read.