New Delhi: As multi-party delegations leave for foreign capitals to convey India’s strong stand against Pakistan-sponsored terrorism, their members were briefed by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on the neighbouring country’s role in terror strikes and India’s commitment to punish the perpetrators as well as their masterminds.
Members, MPs and former parliamentarians, of three of the seven such delegations were briefed, and they are expected to meet government functionaries, including ministers, legislators, think tanks and media during their visits to different parts of the world.
While India is committed to peace, it will not tolerate any terror attacks on its soil and will hit back as part of its “new normal”, Misri told them, according to sources.
In a reference to Pakistan’s offer of an independent probe into the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, Misri noted its earlier behaviour of ignoring evidence and doing little when India presented it with facts following other terror attacks, including 26/11 in Mumbai and in Pathankot in 2026, the sources said.
An MP quoted Misri as saying that trusting Pakistan is like trusting a “chor” (thief) to investigate the crime he has committed.
JD(U) leader Sanjay Jha, who is leading a delegation to Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia and Indonesia, told reporters after the meeting, “Our message to world leaders will be that India has decided ‘enough is enough’ and that Pakistan has acted like a thief asked to probe his own crime whenever India has in the past trusted its words on acting against terrorism.”
Shiv Sena leader Shrikant Shinde, who is leading a delegation to the UAE and some African countries, said they will highlight Pakistan’s links to terror incidents in India and present evidence linking the country to these horrific crimes against humanity not only in India but also abroad.
Former Union minister and Congress leader Salman Khurshid, who is a member of the delegation led by Jha, said the decision to cease military actions was arrived mutually by India and Pakistan, and no other country played a mediator, a rejection of US President Donald Trump’s claim.
BJP leader S S Ahluwalia and Jha noted that even Al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden found a safe hideout in Pakistan before being hunted down by US Navy Seals in a special operation.
Several MPs said other countries needed to be forcefully informed of the facts of Pakistan’s long history of sponsoring terrorism as the neighbouring country is also pushing its own “false” narratives.
“People sitting in Africa, any Arab country or the US or South America do not really keep a tab on every terror incident in India. Delegations like these help inform the world leaders and population, and shape opinions,” an MP said.
Misri, sources said, briefed MPs and other members of the delegations, including diplomats, that Indian action under Operation Sindoor was targeted against terror sites in Pakistan and Pak-occupied Kashmir, and not against military installations and civilians.
It was only after Pakistan’s attempts to attack Indian military installations and the civilian population that India hit back, he said.
Members of the delegations headed by JD(U)’s Sanjay Jha, Shiv Sena’s Shrikant Shinde and DMK’s Kanimozhi attended the briefing in which they are expected to be told about their agenda and its finer details.
Kanimozhi, however, could not attend the meeting.
TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, who was included at the last minute after his party protested the government’s “unilateral” decision to pick its MP Yusuf Pathan, also joined the briefing.
“We will talk about terror incidents. We do not want war but we cannot tolerate harm to our citizens. We will attack terror sites if targeted,” AAP MP Ashok Mittal said.
The delegations will begin leaving from April 21 on a tour that is likely to last between 10 to 14 days.
As many as 51 members of different parties with diplomats being part of all seven delegations will be travelling to 32 foreign capitals and the European Union.
