New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday attacked the Centre for abstaining from voting during the UNGA resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza and alleged that India’s foreign policy is in shambles.
The opposition party also demanded answers from the government on whether India has abandoned its principled stand against war, against genocide, and for justice.
“It is now increasingly evident that our Foreign Policy is in shambles. Perhaps, PM Modi must now take a call on his EAM’s repeated blunders and set some accountability,” Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said.
In a post on X, he said that 149 countries voted for a UNGA resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza while India was only one of the 19 countries that abstained.
“We virtually stand isolated by this step,” he added.
Kharge further stated that the Congress had condemned the attacks by Hamas on the people of Israel on October 8 2023.
“We have consistently condemned the indiscriminate actions that included a siege of the Gaza Strip and bombings in it. 60,000 people have died and there is a widespread and horrific humanitarian crisis.
“Have we abandoned India’s consistent stand advocating for a ceasefire, peace, and dialogue in the Middle East and West Asia?” he asked.
Kharge affirmed that this position is deeply rooted in India’s long-standing tradition of non-alignment and moral diplomacy, through which the nation has always promoted justice and peace in global conflicts.
Noting that on October 19 2023, the Congress called for an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza, he said, “India cannot stand by silently or passively while the region faces horrific violence, humanitarian catastrophe, and increasing instability.”
Echoing similar sentiments, AICC general secretary, organisation, KC Venugopal said India always stood for peace, justice, and human dignity.
“But today, India stands alone as the only country in South Asia, BRICS, and SCO to abstain on a UNGA resolution demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. 60,000 killed. Most of them women and children. Thousands starving. International aid blocked. A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding,” he said in a post on X, questioning if India has abandoned its principled stand against war and genocide.
Venugopal called on the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to explain what had changed in the last six months that led India from supporting a ceasefire to abstaining from the vote.
Training guns on the Narendra Modi-led government, he accused the Centre of having little regard for Jawaharlal Nehru’s legacy and questioned why it had abandoned Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s principled stance on Palestine.
Emphasising that India has long been a principled voice for ceasefire, peace, and dialogue in the Middle East, Venugopal reiterated that India has historically championed the cause of justice and humanitarian values in global conflicts.
“At a time when the region is witnessing unspeakable violence, humanitarian collapse, and growing instability, India cannot afford to remain silent or passive,” the Congress leader noted.
Similarly, Congress MP from Wayanad, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also expressed her disappointment at India’s stance at the UN.
“This is a tragic reversal of our anti-colonial legacy. In fact, not only are we standing silent as Mr Netanyahu annihilates an entire nation, we are cheering on as his government attacks Iran and assassinates its leadership in flagrant violation of its sovereignty and complete contravention of all international norms,” she said in a post on X.
“How can we, as a nation, just abandon the principles of our constitution, and the values of our freedom struggle that led the way for an international arena based on peace and humanity?” she asked.
Noting that there is no justification for this, she added that true global leadership demands the courage to defend justice, and India has shown this courage unfailingly in the past.
“In a world that is increasingly divisive, we must reclaim our voice for humanity and stand fearlessly for truth and non-violence,” Vadra asserted.
AICC media department head Pawan Khera also said that India’s UN abstention on the Gaza ceasefire comes as “an act of staggering moral cowardice – a shameful betrayal of our anti-colonial legacy and the values of our own freedom struggle”.
He recalled how India once stood tall for Palestine and became the first non-Arab state to recognise the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in 1974, inviting Yasser Arafat to attend the 7th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit held in New Delhi in 1983 and formally recognised Palestinian statehood in 1988.
“We stood for justice not as strategy, but as principle. But today, that proud legacy lies in ruins,” he said.
“The abstention is also a craven U-turn from India’s December 2024 vote in the favour of a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, proving that the Modi government remembers nothing, stands for nothing, and chases only photo-ops even if they involve blood-soaked handshakes,” Khera added.
“As Israel sets West Asia ablaze – bombing Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and now Iran – Modi’s complicity has abandoned India’s conscience. The world does not listen to the nation that speaks loudest, it listens to a nation that speaks with clarity, courage and conscience. And India must never surrender that voice,” his post on X read.
The 193-member UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to adopt the resolution introduced by Spain that demanded an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire.
India was among the 19 nations that abstained, while 12 countries voted against the resolution, which got 149 votes in favour.
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said that the resolution comes against the backdrop of the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza.
