Sonia Gandhi Urges India To Break Silence On West Asia, Calls It A 바카라�Surrender of Values바카라�

India has repeatedly showcased its bias towards Israel since the hostilities began in the Gaza Strip in October 2023. Amid global call for a ceasefire, India has chosen to abstain from voting for similar resolutions at the United Nations General Assembly with the recent one seeking unconditional ceasefire in Gaza and India cited a need for dialogue and diplomacy instead. India also kept a distance when the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) issued a sharp statement criticising Israel바카라�s actions, highlighting the growing divergence between New Delhi바카라�s geopolitical choices and the expectations of its southern partners.

In a sharply worded op-ed published in The Hindu, Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi condemned the Indian government바카라�s silence on the escalating crisis in West Asia, particularly in Gaza and Iran. Writing under the title 바카라�It is still not too late for India바카라�s voice to be heard,바카라� Gandhi warned that the current diplomatic inaction marks a disturbing departure from India바카라�s moral and strategic legacy, amounting to what she called not just 바카라�a loss of voice, but also a surrender of values.바카라�

Sonia Gandhi echoes the sentiment that Indian politicians shared a few decades back. India바카라�s support of Palestinian rights has roots in its own struggle for independence. Mahatma Gandhi, in 1938, famously declared, 바카라�Palestine belongs to the Arabs in the same sense that England belongs to the English.바카라� Post-independence, India stayed consistent on its commitment to the Palestinian cause. Read More

Like in 1988 when India chose to boycott a Davis Cup tennis match against Israel in Tel Aviv during the tenure of Rajiv Gandhi as PM. India announced that it is taking a stand for 'Israel's repression of Palestinian demonstrations', in a statement, Gandhi reportedly said, 바카라�India normally would have no objection to contesting the match in Tel Aviv, but that the decision against going this year was to protest Israel's repression of Palestinian demonstrations. At least 100 Palestinians have been killed in clashes with Israeli troops since anti-Israeli protests erupted on December 9.바카라�

But the times of Jawaharlal Nehru and Rajiv Gandhi and their continuous support for Palestinians have seen a drastic evolution in the Narendra Modi era. Not to forget in 1950, Nehru recognised Israel as a country and later in the 1960s also bought arms from them.

With the end of the Cold War, a shift in global geopolitics compelled India to reassess foreign policy. Two decades after opposing Israel바카라�s ratification into the UN, India established diplomatic relations with the State in 1992.

At the UN, India has maintained its voting patterns in favour of Palestine, including a vote in 2020 opposing Israeli settlements in the West Bank. But in the same year, Modi became the first Indian prime minister to visit only Israel.

Modi-Netanyahu friendship only got stronger over the last few years as they united over 'the others' in 'their' land while Israel continued its aggression towards Palestine, the BJP government in India introduced CAA and NRC to put across their agenda.

Like Philip Golub in a piece for Outlook Magazine's 'War And Peace' issue, dated January 11, 2025, wrote, "Today, the UN system and international human rights law is being actively and dangerously challenged by unscrupulous 바카라�leaders바카라�, seeking to remove all restraints on their sovereignty. If all is not to be lost, we must reaffirm and expand the basic principles of the Charter on universal social, economic and human rights."

In another piece of the same issue, under the title, 'The House Of Spirits', Two authors across time zones바카라�Naveen Kishore, founder of the independent Indian publishing house Seagull Books, and Palestinian poet and author Ghassan Zaqtan바카라�write to each other about the human cost of war.

In Outlook Magazine's 11 January 2024 magazine issue ''We Bear Witness", Anisha Reddy interviewed Khaled Abuqare who spoke about the war going on for over 75 years and not on October 7, 2023, he said, "75 years, we have been refugees living in refugee camps. We have been denied the right of return even though it has been articulated by international law. Before October 7, there used to be home demolitions every day, limits on movement every day, arrests of Palestinians every day, attacks on Palestinian farmers, women, children and elderly people every day. It바카라�s not new. But this time, it is genocide."

A deafening silence amidst escalating violence

The comes amid a deadly backdrop of sustained violence in Gaza and an Israeli airstrike inside Iranian territory on June 13, which Gandhi described as 바카라�deeply troubling바카라� and 바카라�illegal.바카라� She lamented that India, which has historically taken firm, principled positions on international issues바카라�especially those involving peace and human rights바카라�has chosen to remain conspicuously silent at a time when its voice could matter the most. She criticised the Indian government for not speaking out against what she described as catastrophic and disproportionate actions by Israel in Gaza, as well as for failing to respond to the Israeli strike on Iran바카라�s soil.

India바카라�s historical stance and shifting priorities

Sonia Gandhi traced India바카라�s earlier stance on the Israel바카라�Palestine issue, pointing out that for decades, successive Indian governments had supported a two-state solution, advocating for the peaceful coexistence of Israel and a sovereign Palestinian state. According to her, this commitment was not just a policy preference but a reflection of India바카라�s broader values of justice, sovereignty, and peaceful resolution of conflicts. She contended that today바카라�s foreign policy appears adrift from these ideals, instead leaning into silence that risks being seen as complicity.

Criticism of global militarism and Netanyahu바카라�s leadership

She further criticised the global environment of militarism and unilateralism, singling out Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu바카라�s leadership style as emblematic of the current crisis. Gandhi noted that Netanyahu has consistently chosen escalation over engagement, and she suggested that such tactics are politically motivated to sustain power, even at the cost of regional peace and thousands of civilian lives. Referring to the devastation in Gaza since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack, she wrote that more than 55,000 Palestinians have been killed, entire neighbourhoods and hospitals flattened, and the region now teeters on the brink of famine.

India must balance its condemnation with compassion

Though she acknowledged that the Congress party had condemned the Hamas attack on Israel, Gandhi stressed that India must not turn a blind eye to the humanitarian catastrophe that followed. She called on the Indian government to use its diplomatic weight and moral standing to urge for de-escalation, restoration of dialogue, and protection of civilian lives, rather than choosing silence in the face of massive suffering.

Warning against US rhetoric and Trump바카라�s provocations

Turning her attention to the U.S., Gandhi offered strong criticism of President Donald Trump바카라�s recent rhetoric, accusing him of stoking tensions by reviving warlike postures. She noted that Trump had once denounced America바카라�s 바카라�forever wars바카라� but now appeared willing to 바카라�follow this destructive path바카라� again. Referring to Trump바카라�s June 17 claim that Iran was nearing nuclear armament바카라�a claim he made while rejecting assessments from his own intelligence agencies바카라�she warned that such statements dangerously undermine facts and fuel conflict. Leadership, she emphasised, must be grounded in truth and diplomacy, not fear and aggression.

India and Iran: A relationship of strategic significance

The op-ed also underscored the importance of India바카라�s longstanding relationship with Iran, which she argued gives New Delhi unique leverage to act as a peace broker in the region. Gandhi recalled Iran바카라�s past support of India in multilateral forums, particularly when it backed India during a vote on Kashmir at the UN Human Rights Commission in 1994. She noted that despite the ideological and political evolution of Iran since the 1979 revolution, the civilizational and strategic links between the two countries remain intact and must not be ignored.

Moral diplomacy and strategic prudence

Gandhi framed the ongoing crisis not only as a foreign policy challenge but also a moral and humanitarian one. She pointed out that millions of Indian nationals live and work in West Asia, and continued instability poses direct risks to their lives and livelihoods. Thus, she argued, India바카라�s silence is not just ethically indefensible바카라�it is also strategically shortsighted.

India must reclaim its global voice

In her conclusion, Gandhi issued a direct appeal to the Indian government: 바카라�It is still not too late. India must speak clearly, act responsibly, and use every diplomatic channel available to defuse tensions and promote a return to dialogue in West Asia.바카라� She emphasised that India바카라�s stature in the world and its moral authority are rooted in its willingness to stand for peace, justice, and the rights of all people, regardless of strategic alliances or economic interests.

Sonia Gandhi바카라�s op-ed has already drawn attention across political and diplomatic circles, with many observers seeing it as a pointed rebuke of the Modi government바카라�s approach to international affairs. While some may argue that neutrality in such volatile times is a pragmatic choice, Gandhi바카라�s piece makes the case that silence in the face of injustice is neither neutral nor pragmatic바카라�it is a dangerous abdication of responsibility.

By calling on India to reclaim its voice and reassert its historical values on the global stage, Sonia Gandhi has sought to revive a legacy of moral diplomacy that once earned India widespread respect and credibility. Whether this intervention will influence government policy remains uncertain, but the message is clear: the world is watching, and India cannot afford to remain on the sidelines.