2 months ago
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Senior Congress person Shashi Tharoor connected Thursday (March 19, 2026) said helium understands the Indian government's tendency to instrumentality a cautious basal connected the struggle betwixt U.S.-Israel and Iran, and hoped that it could marque a nationalist telephone to some sides to extremity the warfare quickly.
In an interrogation with PTI, the erstwhile Minister of State for outer affairs besides stated that the authorities should person instantly offered nationalist condolences to Iran implicit the decease of its erstwhile Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and acted connected akin lines arsenic it had done successful the aftermath of the demise of past Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi successful a chopper crash successful 2024.
Iran-Israel warfare updates connected March 19, 2026
Mr. Tharoor asserted that successful the existent circumstances, a bully radical of countries not enactment to the struggle connected either broadside could spell to some sides and inquire them to telephone disconnected the conflict, and India should beryllium astatine the forefront of this.
Asked astir assertions from assorted quarters that India should person condemned the assassination of Khamenei successful a U.S.-Israel strike, Mr. Tharoor said, "I don't cognize astir condemning it, but we should surely person condoled it. After each (he was) the spiritual person of a state with which helium person affable relations. It would person been appropriate, the time it happened, for america to explicit nationalist condolences and stock the grief of his loved ones and of his federation conscionable arsenic 2 years agone erstwhile [former] President Raisi was killed successful a chopper crash, we instantly issued a condolence arsenic good arsenic announced nationalist mourning." Mr. Tharoor noted that the infinitesimal the Iranian embassy opened the condolence book, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri went and signed the book, which was a "good thing", helium said.
"But I conjecture we could person been a spot more... it is simply the courteous happening to bash for immoderate country. For example, the President of immoderate faraway country, with which we bash not adjacent person specified a adjacent relation, were to beryllium specified a victim, it would beryllium unusual for america not to connection condolences," Mr. Tharoor said.
"But isolated from that, I deliberation I recognize the government's tendency to take, for the deficiency of a amended word, a cautious stand," helium said.
Mr. Tharoor said India has tremendous stakes successful what is going connected and its vigor information is babelike connected the concern successful the Gulf, including its LPG and LNG imports.
"We person 9 cardinal of our citizens surviving there, which are an important root of remittances, and their information and well-being is people a priority, determination are investments coming to america from countries similar the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and we person precise important wide commercialized relations arsenic good arsenic governmental involvement and information cooperation, each of that.
"You don't privation to spot that jeopardised. So for us, bid and stableness successful the Middle East-West Asia is highly important," the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram said.
On apical of that, helium said, the struggle has already affected radical successful India.
"There are dhabas closing down due to the fact that of shortages of state cylinders, determination are situations wherever my friends successful Hyderabad are saying nary 1 tin navigator 'haleem' anymore due to the fact that it is slow-cooking dish, determination are challenges present successful the coming predetermination campaigns, wherever are we going to halt for chai erstwhile 'chaiwalas' don't person LPG cylinders? I americium not joking, these are genuine concerns affecting the Indian room and the mean Indian household," Mr. Tharoor said.
At the moment, determination is nary panic astatine the petrol pumps, but if this warfare carries connected for different four-six weeks, "we don't cognize however overmuch further the consequences could scope successful our regular lives", Mr. Tharoor said, noting that India wants the struggle to end.
"I would truly anticipation that the Indian authorities could basal up and marque a nationalist telephone to some sides to extremity this warfare quickly. I inactive consciousness that sooner oregon aboriginal they are some [US-Israel and Iran] going to privation a ladder to ascent down the perches they are on”.
"Mr. Trump has already said helium is moving retired of targets to hit. The Iranians are intelligibly losing 1 furniture aft different of their government," helium said.
The Congress has attacked the Modi authorities for its "silence" connected the assassination of Khamenei and said "a compromised Prime Minister nary uncertainty wants to debar antagonising his American and Israeli friend".
The absorption enactment had condemned the assassination. It had said India rightly condemned Iran's attacks connected Gulf states but was "completely quiet" connected the U.S.-Israeli battle connected Iran successful the archetypal place.
Earlier this month, the Congress had staged a walkout successful the Rajya Sabha and protested successful the Lok Sabha to explicit its dissatisfaction with the connection of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar connected the West Asia concern successful some Houses of Parliament.
The enactment had termed Mr. Jaishankar's connection "vapid" and alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's overseas argumentation "(mis)adventurism", coupled with the government's "undermining" of the Indian Foreign Service, is pushing India into "vassalage".
The U.S. and Israel launched a large subject onslaught connected Iran connected February 28, sidesplitting Khamenei.
Making a suo motu connection successful Parliament, Mr. Jaishankar had said New Delhi stood for maintaining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each states successful the region. He defended allowing the Iranian vessel to dock astatine an Indian larboard arsenic the close determination taken connected humanitarian grounds.
