New Delhi: Former Foreign Secretary and Rajya Sabha MP, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, on Wednesday severely condemned Congress party for selectively portraying his recent conversation with former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and providing a “false narrative” to mislead the people of India.
Shringla held a wide-ranging discussion with Rudd, a leading expert on foreign policy, earlier this month on issues ranging from Asia’s geopolitical future, India’s national and international priorities to relations with key partners.
At the event organised by the Asia Society Policy Institute in New Delhi, the BJP MP, also India’s former Ambassador to the United States, spotlighted that, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India’s foreign policy is guided by strategic autonomy and a nation-first approach.
However, he alleged that the “very, very positive conversation” which was “greatly appreciated by domestic and international audiences”, was selectively portrayed by the Congress party to convey a “false impression” at the public level.
“During the conversation with Dr. Rudd, the issue of possible US sanctions against India for the purchase of Russian oil came up. And to place matters in perspective, I spoke about the fact that the US had in 2019, stopped exemptions that it had carved out for a few countries like India and China, for the purchase of Iranian oil. And there was a similar situation with regard to Venezuela. And then we spoke about the current context to the context of Russia. And, at that time, I pointed out that it was the energy security of one and a half billion people that was of paramount importance to the government, the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji. And, I said that all decisions that were taken in this regard, would be based on national interest and a nation first approach. This has been the policy since 2014, when Prime Minister Modi was voted into office, and will continue to remain the policy for the government,” Shringla posted on X Wednesday.
“However, unfortunately, this entire conversation was selectively portrayed by the Congress party to provide a false narrative that is being sold to mislead the public. And my advice to Congress stooges who put all this out is to stop using false narratives, whether this is to portray, any situation in our country, when you cannot win in a free and fair democracy, you know, a loser in democracy can never be a winner with false narratives,” he added.
Shrigla stated that, during the conversation with Rudd, he had made it clear that India’s energy security and national interest will always come first.
He then went on to say that a party that has a history of yielding to external pressure on matters of vital national interest “has little ground” to question India’s commitment to strategic autonomy.
“Let me remind everybody that this is the same Congress party that halted India’s missile and nuclear programme in 1994, under US pressure, the then President US President Bill Clinton had interceded and the Congress party stopped.
And this is also the party that abruptly cancelled planned nuclear tests that we were going to undertake in December 1995, again under US pressure. And it took the BJP’s first Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji to undertake these nuclear tests in 1998 and make India the proud and responsible nuclear power we are today,” Shringla mentioned.
The Rajya Sabha MP also cited the “innumerable and notable instances” where the Congress party “succumbed to US pressure” on issues of vital interest, including the “most stark and illustrative” 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
“I remember that the expectation of the public level was that the government will do something to ensure that there is retaliation for what was possibly one of the worst terrorist attacks that the world had ever experienced, comparable even to 9-11, other attacks in other parts of the world. However, the Congress party didn’t do anything. And there are no guesses as to why US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice paid a visit to Delhi and asked the government not to undertake any military response. And, the UPA government obeyed. This was a national shame that we haven’t gotten over even today. Now contrast this to the bold response of Prime Minister Modi in response, I mean, in dealing with Pakistani terrorist provocations.”
Highlighting that in a democracy, political arguments must be built on facts, not false narratives, Shringla mentioned that a party that has “consistently succumbed to external pressure on vital issues of national interest” should not be making allegations of this nature.
“Yet, this is the same party that today continuously puts out false narratives, whether on the issue of Arunachal Pradesh involving our armed forces, or the SIR, revealing its political bankruptcy, and disclosing its pathetic inability to win the people’s ballot. Please stop misleading the people of India. This is my request to the Congress party. Stop misleading the people of India. Enough is enough,” he concluded.
(IANS)
