Bhopal: On June 3, Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, ignited a political uproar by asserting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had yielded to US President Donald Trump’s threats to establish a truce with Pakistan after Operation Sindoor. Addressing a Congress event in Bhopal, Gandhi mocked Modi, claiming the call from Trump led to an abject surrender, reminiscent of India’s capitulation at the behest of a certain Prime Minister Indira Gandhi when the US had put pressure ahead of the 1971 war. Gandhi’s remarks were immediately condemned by the BJP as they sought to portray an Indian leader parroting a Pakistani line.
Speaking to party workers at the launch of the Congress party’s Sangathan Srijan Abhiyan, Gandhi said, “Trump called and said, ‘Narender, surrender,’ and Modi ji said, ‘yes, sir.’ ” He lauded Indira Gandhi’s determination in 1971, as the US Seventh Fleet increased its presence during the Bangladesh liberation war, saying, “Indira ji said, ‘I will do what I have to do.” Gandhi continued his attack on the BJP and the RSS, alleging that they “flee” at the slightest hint of pressure, a trait that leaders of the Congress party did not possess as Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Sardar Patel “confronted superpowers.”
The MEA has denied US mediation, saying the May 10, 2025, truce was a bilateral accord reached via direct conversation between the DGMOs of India and Pakistan. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that in conversations held between India and the US about the military situation, from May 7 to May 10, tariffs or external pressure were not included. India, however, claimed that Pakistan announced the ceasefire after the heavy losses it faced in Operation Sindoor, launched to eliminate the terror camps following the Pahalgam attack.
BJP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari hit out by describing Gandhi’s comments as “ indecent ” and saying that Rahul Gandhi has “ a heart that beats for Pakistan”. Bhandari referred to Gandhi not taking his shoes off when he offered a flower tribute to Indira Gandhi’s statue earlier in the day and said his behavior does not reflect respect for Indian traditions. “Under Modi, we have taught the masters of terror in Pakistan a lesson; Gandhi has no answer,” he told ANI, attacking Gandhi, whom he dismissed as “uncivilized” and as an agent of Pakistan. Other BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala, in a tweet, referred to Gandhi as a “leader of Pakistani propaganda” and said he should listen to leaders senior to him from his party, like Shashi Tharoor and Salman Khurshid, who refuted that any third-party mediation was done.
In a post on X, Gandhi reiterated his claims, writing, “[T]he phone of Trump came, and Narendra ji immediately surrendered. History proves this. this is the nature of BJP-RSS; they always retreat “In 1971, India split Pakistan in half due to the threat posed by the United States.” The BJP hit back with a social media campaign mocking the Gandhis, with party spokesman Gaurav Bhatia tweeting a picture showing the words “Narendra Modi ji = Thunder 🔥 Rahul Gandhi = Blunder 😂” above a similar list of the country’s airbases and terror infrastructure that were attacked by the Indian military in response to Pakistan.
The controversy underscores the political slugfest that has followed Operation Sindoor, with the Congress questioning the transparency of the government and the BJP accusing the opposition of weakening India’s military achievements. With jibes flying between both camps, the row over India’s foreign relations and its national pride is set to escalate in the run-up to the next parliamentary meeting.
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