The Congress party on Monday lambasted the Modi government for what it termed a "deafening silence" on the escalating Iran-Israel conflict, criticising its failure to condemn the recent United States airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites and Israel’s continuing military actions.
Reacting sharply to Washington’s bombing of Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities over the weekend, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh accused US President Donald Trump of contradicting his own rhetoric on peace with Iran.
"President Trump's decision to unleash US air power on Iran makes a mockery of his own calls for the continuation of talks with Iran," Ramesh said on social media platform X.
Also read: PM Modi expresses concern to Iran President after US strikes
He further demanded that the Indian government shed its passivity and take a principled stance. "The Indian National Congress reiterates the absolute essentiality of immediate diplomacy and dialogue with Iran. The Government of India must demonstrate greater moral courage than it has so far," he said.
Ramesh censured the Modi government for its silence on what he described as "the genocide being perpetrated on the Palestinians in Gaza", and for making no criticism of either the US strike or Israeli operations. "The Modi Government has unequivocally neither criticised nor condemned the US bombing and Israel's aggression, bombings and targeted assassinations," he wrote.
The US-led strikes, carried out under what has been dubbed Operation Midnight Hammer, have raised fears of a broader conflagration in the Middle East, prompting calls for restraint from several global quarters.
In contrast, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during a recent call with Iran’s newly elected President Masoud Pezeshkian, expressed India’s "deep concern" and called for “immediate de-escalation through dialogue and diplomacy”.
However, Congress’s strong rebuke signals disquiet in the domestic political space over India's handling of the situation.
Follow us
