Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh. File
| Photo Credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
The Congress on Wednesday (June 18, 2025) demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi must immediately chair an all-party meeting upon his return from his three-nation tour to brief leaders on what he has told U.S. President Donald Trump in a telephonic conversation and take the nation into confidence.
The Opposition party also termed as a “huge setback” reports that Pakistan Army Chief Gen Asim Munir would be having lunch with Mr. Trump, and said the PM should have conveyed India’s displeasure on it to the U.S. President during their telephonic conversation.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh urged the government to form a “Pahalgam Review Committee” on the lines of the Kargil Review Committee that was set up three days after the Kargil War and was chaired by K. Subrahmanyam, father of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
Speaking with PTI, Mr. Ramesh said the Prime Minister must rebut in Parliament Mr. Trump’s claims of using trade as an instrument for mediating a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.
Mr. Ramesh’s remarks came after Mr. Modi spoke with President Trump and set the record straight that India had paused strikes on Pakistan during Operation Sindoor following a request from Islamabad and not due to mediation or offer of a trade deal by the U.S.
In his 35-minute phone call with Mr. Trump on Tuesday (June 17, 2025), Mr. Modi briefed the U.S. President on Operation Sindoor, launched by India against terror sites in Pakistan, and made it clear that it has never accepted any third-party mediation and will never accept it in the future, according to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri.
On reports that Mr. Trump is scheduled to have lunch with Gen Munir, Mr. Ramesh said, “This is a triple jhatka for Indian diplomacy. Today Field Marshal Munir, whose incendiary, inflammatory, provocative and unacceptable remarks formed the background to the Pahalgam terror attack, is set to have lunch with President Trump. The same military man who is not the head of government is being invited for a special one-on-one lunch with President Trump. This is a huge setback.” “The second huge setback came when U.S. General Michael Kurilla, the U.S. Central Command Chief, had declared Pakistan to be a ‘phenomenal partner’ in counter terror operations. Same Pakistan that gave sanctuary to Osama Bin Laden who was killed in May 2, 2011 in Abbottabad. How does Pakistan become a phenomenal partner? Pakistan is a phenomenal perpetrator. To call a perpetrator partner is a setback for Indian diplomacy,” Mr. Ramesh told PTI.
He said the third setback was President Trump 14 times claiming credit for pausing Operation Sindoor and having a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.
“He (Mr. Trump) says he used trade as an instrument, equating India and Pakistan. He said this 14 times and the PM has not said anything since May 10. So this is a triple setback,” the Congress leader said.
On the Modi-Trump telephonic conversation, Mr. Ramesh said the PM is said to have told Mr. Trump that trade was not discussed in relation to Operation Sindoor and there is no room for mediation.
“Why doesn’t he say this to the all-party meeting? That is why we have been demanding a special Parliament session so that the PM takes the nation into confidence and say all the things he has supposed to have told President Trump,” Mr. Ramesh said.
“When he comes back, let him immediately call an all-party meeting and say this is what my 35-minute conversation with President Trump was all about,” he said.
It has taken 37 days for the PM to break his silence on Mr. Trump’s claims made 14 times, Mr. Ramesh said, reiterating that Mr. Modi must take the nation into confidence.
“I feel that Asim Munir’s lunch and Mr. Kurilla’s statements are huge setbacks for PM’s diplomacy. Diplomacy has been high on optics under the Modi government. These are unexpected setbacks. We must depend less on optics and more on substance,” Mr. Ramesh said.
“There is no substitute for taking the nation into confidence and building a collective will and resolve,” he said.
Mr. Ramesh alleged that Mr. Modi was “divider-in-chief” and asked why he doesn’t take Opposition leaders into confidence.
Mr. Ramesh also said that during his conversation with Mr. Trump, Mr. Modi should have conveyed India’s displeasure over the scheduled lunch with Gen Munir.
“Whatever he has supposed to have told Trump— which the FS has released, let him talk to the Opposition parties, let him say all this from his mouth. He must rebut Mr. Trump’s claims on the floor of the House. He must rebut it and not get other Ministers to do so,” Mr. Ramesh said.
The Congress last week had said the U.S is constantly making statements which can only be interpreted to mean that it is hyphenating India and Pakistan.
It had stressed that Mr. Modi should leave aside his “stubbornness” to call an all-party meeting and a special session of Parliament.
Published – June 18, 2025 01:32 pm IST
