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Exercise to send MPs abroad runs into rough weather

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19th May, 2025 20:04 IST

Should the government have called of Parliament after the Pahalgam terror attack on 22 April or after the abrupt pause of Operation Sindoor on 10 May? The government is, after all, accountable to the people and to Parliament, points out a statement issued by the CPI(M), and needed to answer questions being raised by people on the ground, in Kashmir and elsewhere in the country.

The urgency of a special session was underscored by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to the nation, in which he spoke of the ‘new normal’ in India’s fight against terror and Pakistan. The decision to keep the Indus Water Treaty of 1960 in abeyance — provoking a tit-for-tat reaction from Pakistan which said it would no longer abide by the Shimla Agreement of 1972 — also called for greater clarity and deliberation in Parliament.

The decision instead to mobilise 51 members of Parliament and retired diplomats and brief them on ‘India’s case’ to be presented in 32 countries and the European Union beginning 23-24 May, has fallen short of those expectations. There are also indications that the exercise has run into some unexpected turbulence.

The CPI(M), for example, has objected to parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju calling up its leader in the Rajya Sabha to inform him of the initiative. The All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) appears to have from the exercise, miffed at the government unilaterally including former cricketer and party MP Yusuf Pathan. The Congress, too, has made no secret of its unhappiness at the manner in which the government has selected the MPs.

The inclusion of MPs like Nishikant Dubey, Tejasvi Surya, Bansuri Swaraj, Shrikant Shinde, Rekha Sharma and Manan Kumar Mishra among others has raised eyebrows. The inclusion of M.J. Akbar — former journalist and minister of state for external affairs who resigned after being accused of sexual harassment and assault — has also come under scrutiny.

What criteria were followed for selecting the MPs is something that Rijiju is not willing to reveal. Indeed, he has clarified that the government never asked the Congress to send names of the four MPs from the party that the government had agreed to include in the delegations.

“Foreign policy is entirely the domain of the government and it must bear full responsibility for our foreign relations. AITC stands shoulder to shoulder in total solidarity with our armed forces for effective long-term deterrence against Pakistan- based terrorism. The nation, the flag, & our national resolve belong to all of India and to every proud citizen,” Trinamool MP Sagarika Ghose tweeted.

“At no point of time, the Modi government did the Congress the courtesy of saying ‘look these are the four names we have selected’, what do you have to say about them’,” said Jairam Ramesh, Rajya Sabha Congress MP and general-secretary (communications).

“His (Modi’s) image has taken a beating, he is desperate in changing the narrative once again. Our demand is that a Prime Minister-chaired all-party meeting be held and a special session be called to reiterate the resolution of February 1994 and give it fresh meaning, as well as take the nation into confidence,” Ramesh added.

He also went on to tweet on Monday, 19 May, “After 11 years of abusing and defaming the Opposition — especially the Congress — the PM is now forced to send all-party delegations overseas. The truth is that the BJP's poisonous politics at home has cost us hugely abroad. Our sanctimonious diplomacy has fallen flat and India is back to being hyphenated with Pakistan. That is the real 'new normal.’

The self-styled Vishwaguru’s balloon — which was full of hot air — has been well and truly punctured. It is a reflection of his own inadequacies — now completely exposed — that the Prime Minister is now turning towards bipartisanship. But this is only momentary, hypocritical, and opportunistic."

The Congress on Monday dismissed as an “absolute lie” Rijiju’s reported assertion that the government did not ask for names for the all-party diplomatic delegations going abroad, and said it was “cheap politics” to not get the names it selected cleared with the Opposition party.

Each delegation, as per the information shared by the parliamentary affairs minister, includes one or two former diplomats, including former foreign secretary Harshvardhan Shringla and India’s permanent representative to the UN, Akbaruddin.

While the roles are yet to be officially confirmed or clarified, the former diplomats are expected to present India’s case and answer questions while the MPs will be showcased as representing a national consensus and unity, which appear frayed at best. The leaders of the delegations, all MPs, may be asked to deliver the opening addresses.

The government may not like letting the MPs loose to answer questions, however, feel political and diplomatic circles. It is one thing to include the MPs in the delegation but quite another to trust them. The government does not actually trust the MPs, especially from the Opposition, they point out.   

Curiously and significantly, the Samajwadi Party and AITC had two members each in the delegations before AITC declared it was withdrawing Pathan. The DMK has just one representative in the seven teams. Both Bengal and Tamil Nadu are slated to hold assembly elections in 2026.

The inclusion of 11 Muslim names among the 59 dignitaries is also one of those rare occasions when this government has sought to include Muslims to present ‘India’s case’. 

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