Opposition in India seeks answers from Modi govt regarding truce

• Rahul Gandhi demands convening of special parliament session.
• Trump's post viewed as "surprise" by Congressman Sachin.
• Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin welcomes the ceasefire.

KARACHI: India's opposition leaders have reacted strongly to US President Donald Trump's announcement of a truce between India and Pakistan, raising concerns about the Indian government's diplomatic approach, strategy, and the role of a foreign leader in drawing the curtain on the conflict.

Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Indian National Congress and the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, spearheaded the campaign by demanding an urgent special session of the parliament, The News reported.

Gandhi, in his letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, mentioned the Trump-announced truce, Operation Sindoor, and the recent Pahalgam terror incident as issues that require immediate action. Highlighting the importance of accountability and legislative debate, Gandhi said: "This will also be an opportunity to demonstrate our collective resolve to meet the challenges ahead."

The Indian National Congress reiterated this call in a social media post citing his letter: "Rahul Gandhi writes to PM Modi, reiterating the unanimous request of the Opposition to convene a special session of parliament immediately to discuss the Pahalgam terror attack, Operation Sindoor and the India-Pakistan ceasefire, first announced by US President Trump."

Mallikarjun Kharge, the president of the Congress and the leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha, also shared a similar letter on social media, highlighting the party's unity.

Trump's post was also viewed as a "surprise" by Congressman Sachin Pilot, who described it as "an attempt to internationalise the Kashmir issue."

Outside the Congress, reactions varied somewhat. Aam Aadmi Party’s Chief National Spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar expressed outrage over what she termed a loss of sovereignty: “140 crore Indians were with the PM in this war between humanity and terrorism, but now we all feel cheated that how a foreign power put a full stop on our internal matter... The PM should address the nation and explain why a foreign power did this, supersede the Indian government, and can we trust Pakistan after such a ceasefire?” she wrote on X.

While many opposition leaders were critical, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, welcomed the ceasefire. Expressing cautious optimism, Stalin paid tribute to India’s armed forces and said the ceasefire was a step towards peace.

Congress MP and former diplomat Shashi Tharoor did appreciate the ceasefire but added: “We need to have more details, but I am very glad. India never wanted a long-term war, but India wanted to teach terrorists a lesson, I believe that lesson has been taught.”

Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Manoj Jha, however, echoed Gandhi’s concerns, stating he felt “unsettled” by the fact that a foreign head of state had been the one to announce the ceasefire. He too called for a special session of parliament to address the implications of the move.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut also demanded an all-party conference and said that Modi no longer has the right to remain in power. He also asked for Home Minister Amit Shah to resign immediately.

Prominent journalist and Founding Editor of The Wire, Siddharth Varadarajan, offered a scathing analysis of the government’s handling of the entire crisis. In a widely shared post on X, he wrote: “The Modi government is welcome to spin this any way it likes — i.e. that it is the Pakistanis who went running to the US saying ‘save us’, that India accomplished all that it set out to — but the reality is that Modi did something that has produced an unsavoury but quite predictable end result.

“Pakistan now believes J&K is back in play as an international issue and the US is also saying this. The Indian side has suffered military losses that it is reluctant to quantify... RW zealots are angry with Modi because they believe he lacks the courage to follow through on his promised military solution.

“The truth is that Modi knew all along that there is no military solution... Take all of this together and one conclusion stares you in the face: the Pakistani military and ‘non-state actors’ are not likely to feel particularly deterred by the events of the past week and may even be emboldened to be more adventurist.”