July 17, 2026

Operation Sindoor: Congress Not On The Same Page With Some Opposition Parties

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2025-05-14 07:15:05

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Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

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The opposition has learnt its lesson well - or has it?. In the previous surgical strikes, most opposition parties questioned the bona fides of both the Centre and the Army and demanded proof of the action taken. This had not gone down well with the general public which viewed them as anti-national. Hence, this time around, almost all Opposition leaders are trying to outdo each other in congratulating the forces and, in a more subdued tone (except Congress leader Shashi Tharoor who has been effusive in his support), approving the action taken by the government.

But, as always, the differences in the INDI alliance are there for all to see. The Congress has repeatedly demanded that the government hold a special session of Parliament to discuss Operation Sindoor and the ceasefire with Pakistan. The Trinamool Congress and the Samajwadi Party are believed to have supported this move privately. On the other hand, senior Opposition leader Sharad Pawar has refused to back the Congress demand. Pawar said that since these were matters sensitive to the nation's security, a public discussion in Parliament is not appropriate. Instead, he called for an all-party meeting to discuss the matter.

But the Congress has laid down a condition if an all-party meeting is held. It has said that it will not attend the meeting if Prime Minister Modi chooses not to attend it. This is like asking the school principal to be present in parents-teachers meeting. It was not immediately known whether other opposition parties will also boycott the all-party meeting if Modi is absent. The all-party meeting will discuss Operation Sindoor and the ceasefire. Hence, top officials from the defence and external affairs ministries and from the security forces, along with the defence and external affairs ministers and maybe the NSA, would be the best pool of persons to explain the measures taken and answer the questions put forward by the opposition leaders. PM Modi should also attend, but threatening to boycott the meeting if he doesn't is not appropriate. What does the Congress actually want - to know about the details of the operation or to question Modi?