Modi said he had received multiple missed calls from the Vice President of the United States on the night of 9 May, while he was in a meeting with top army officers.
Published Jul 29, 2025 | 8:01 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 29, 2025 | 8:01 PM
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was absent from Monday’s debate as he had been during earlier all-party meetings convened to discuss Operation Sindoor.
Synopsis: In his first remarks to Parliament after the 22 April Pahalgam attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday defended his government’s handling of Operation Sindoor and sought to refute accusations that it capitulated under pressure from the United States and agreed to a ceasefire. He also launched a scathing attack on the Congress, accusing it of being negative towards the armed forces, demanding proof, and echoing Pakistani narratives, thereby weakening morale. He further alleged that the Congress had constantly shifted its stance during the operation solely to oppose the government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, 29 July, defended the Union government’s handling of Operation Sindoor, a day after Opposition parties demanded that it take moral responsibility for what they described as a “cowardly” and “weak” response to the 22 April Pahalgam attack and the failure to identify the attackers who killed 26 people.
Monday’s debate in Parliament was held after sustained pressure from the Opposition. Modi was absent from the session, as he had been during earlier all-party meetings convened to discuss Operation Sindoor.
“A lot was said here on India’s foreign policy. There were discussions on global support too… We received global support. But unfortunately, the valour of the brave jawans of my country did not get the support of Congress,” he said in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, in his first public remarks on the issue.
Responding to the Opposition’s accusation that the Modi government had capitulated to pressure from the Trump-led US administration and agreed to a hasty ceasefire, Modi said he had received multiple missed calls from the Vice President of the United States on the night of 9 May, while he was in a meeting with top army officers.
“He tried for hours while I was in a meeting with the army chiefs. I wasn’t able to receive his calls, so I gave him a call back, saying I got three or four of your missed calls. Then he told me over the phone that Pakistan is about to launch a huge assault,” he said.
According to the Prime Minister, he responded with a direct warning.
“If Pakistan wishes to do this, then it will prove very costly for it. And if Pakistan were to assault India, we would launch an even bigger assault, and in the ensuing conflict, we would answer a bullet with a bullet,” he said.
“On the morning of the 10th, we had neutralised the Pakistan Army’s capabilities. That was our response, and Pakistan has now learned that our responses will be stronger than they have ever been before. It also knows this: that if an opportunity were to arise in the future, then India can do whatever it takes.”
Operation Sindoor was a series of precision strikes conducted by the Indian Armed Forces on 7 May, targeting nine terrorist infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack.
The strikes reportedly hit camps linked to proscribed groups including Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Hizbul Mujahideen. Targets were located in Bahawalpur, Muridke, Sialkot, and Muzaffarabad.
The Ministry of Defence had earlier described the strikes as “focused, measured, and non-escalatory,” with efforts made to avoid Pakistani military and civilian installations in order to limit collateral damage.
Modi further launched a sharp attack on the Congress, accusing it of questioning the armed forces, weakening their morale, and aligning with Pakistan in spreading doubt and fear during and after Operation Sindoor.
“In today’s warfare, information and narratives are huge battlegrounds,” he said. “Creating narratives and using AI too, they are trying to reduce the morale of the army and induce fear in the hearts of the people. Unfortunately, Congress and its allies have become involved in such attempts by Pakistan,” he said.
The Prime Minister alleged that the Congress shifted its stance during the course of Operation Sindoor — initially opposing the operation, then downplaying its significance.
“The army was successful in achieving its objectives of Operation Sindoor, yet Congress demanded proof from the army. Yet when they saw the country’s mood, they started to waver in their stance. They changed their position, and what did they begin to say?” he asked.
“The Congress people said, what is this surgical strike, such a big deal, we had also done it. One leader even said we had done three surgical strikes. Another said six, a third said fifteen surgical strikes. The bigger the leader, the bigger the number.”
Modi went on to accuse the party of having a history of doubting the armed forces, invoking the aftermath of the 2019 Balakot airstrikes.
“When we launched an airstrike in Balakot, they started demanding photos. Where did you hit, what did you hit, how many were killed? Pakistan was also asking the same questions. These people were also asking the same,” he said, alleging that the Congress sought political mileage from situations where he, as prime minister, was under pressure.
“When pilot Abhinandan was captured, there was happiness in Pakistan that a pilot of India was in their hands. But there were also a few people here who were whispering, ‘Now Modi is stuck,’ ‘Now let Modi get Abhinandan back,’ ‘Let’s see what Modi can do.’ Yet within a few days, Abhinandan returned,” he said.
He added that similar doubts were cast following the Pahalgam incident. “After the Pahalgam attack, a BSF jawan was in Pakistan’s custody, so these people thought they had a big opportunity on their hands, and they started writing several stories on social media and making them go viral. Yet the BSF jawan too returned home soon.”
Returning to his earlier line of criticism, the Prime Minister alleged that those who questioned the ceasefire that followed retaliatory strikes were merely shifting goalposts.
“Once a ceasefire was achieved, they started a new line: why did we stop? Bahadurs, you only want a reason to oppose. That is why not just me, but the entire country is laughing at you,” he said.
“There is opposition towards the army; negativity against the army has been the oldest issue with Congress.”
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
