NEW DELHI, June 23: US President Donald Trump’s decision to unleash American air power on Iran makes a “mockery” of his own calls for the continuation of talks with Iran, the Congress said on Monday and slammed the Modi government for neither criticising nor condemning the US bombing and Israel’s aggression.
The opposition party reiterated the absolute essentiality of immediate diplomacy and dialogue with Iran.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said 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.
“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.
“The Modi Government has unequivocally neither criticised nor condemned the US bombing and Israel’s aggression, bombings and targeted assassinations,” Ramesh said on X.
“It has also maintained a deafening silence on the genocide being perpetrated on the Palestianians in Gaza,” he added.
His remarks come after the US bombed three major nuclear sites — Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan — in Iran, bringing itself into the Israel-Iran conflict.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday conveyed to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian India’s “deep concern” over Iran’s conflict with Israel and called for immediate de-escalation of the situation through “dialogue and diplomacy”.
The US attack on the Iranian nuclear facilities has triggered fears of a wider regional conflict, with many leading countries and blocs calling for restraint.
On Saturday, before the US bombing, Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi had strongly criticised India’s silence on Israel’s devastation in Gaza and Iran as “not just a loss of its voice, but also a surrender of values”.
In an article – “It is still not too late for India’s voice to be heard”, she had accused the Modi government of abandoning India’s long-standing and principled commitment to a peaceful two-nation solution envisioning an independent Palestine along with Israel.
Gandhi, in the article, had also been critical of US President Trump for following a “destructive path” in West Asia, after having spoken against America’s endless wars. (PTI)
