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‘Scared To Talk About Trump?’: Congress-Led Oppn Slams PM Modi’s Speech As NDA Lauds Him
ABP Live News | July 30, 2025 12:41 AM CST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in the Lok Sabha, in response to the debate on the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, triggered a wave of criticism from Opposition leaders on Tuesday who accused him of deflecting key concerns and avoiding direct references to China and US President Donald Trump’s ceasefire claim.

Speaking to reporters after the address, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi expressed disappointment, stating, “He didn’t directly say that Trump was lying, and throughout his speech, he didn’t mention China even once. The interesting part is that China was not even mentioned once. The world knows China supported Pakistan, yet neither the Prime Minister nor our Defence Minister spoke about it”, news agency PTI reported.

Congress MP K.C. Venugopal, reacting to the Prime Minister’s remarks, questioned the government’s silence on Trump’s statement. “We are asking very clearly whether Trump’s claim is bogus or not, whether he is telling truth or not. No answer… Why is he scared about talking about Trump? He has to say that what Trump is saying is not the truth… When genuine questions are asked by the Opposition, he hides behind Pakistan story. People know about that. We are the people fighting against Pakistan, we are for India…”, as per news agency ANI.

Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav also raised concern over the government’s China stance and border issues. “No one can defeat the BJP in rhetoric. If the BJP doesn’t see a threat standing behind Pakistan, then who can show them that? A country that is snatching away our market, which is encroaching on our borders… BJP should at least tell us if India’s area has increased or decreased between 2014 and today.”

Yadav further questioned the broader national security strategy, saying, “We want our borders to be peaceful and secure. But they are not concerned about the country that poses the biggest threat… We talk of self-reliance, that the manufacturing sector should expand but we have become a trader country.”

He also commented on the government’s internal policies and intelligence lapses, adding, ”‘Shoot-at-sight’ policy was in effect in Uttar Pradesh. This is not the policy of the Lok Sabha. What should I understand from this? What happens in UP will happen now… If terrorists have been killed, there has been an Intelligence failure once again. Will the Govt tell us how are terrorists coming to India again and again? Who will answer that? Who will take responsibility for that?… Did the Rafale take off or not?”

Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi criticised what he called an attempt by the Prime Minister to monopolise credit for military operations. “In his 2-hour speech, PM Modi attempted to take the entire credit for Operation Sindoor. At the beginning of his speech, he said that the people of the country supported him. Wrong. People completely supported the Govt and Indian armed forces. It is sad that PM Modi attempted to take credit for Operation Sindoor but he skipped taking responsibility for Pahalgam… Trump said 28-29 times (on ceasefire) but he (PM Modi) did not refute it even once.”

‘No Ownership, Just Credit Seeking’: TMC and Congress MPs React

Trinamool Congress MP Sagarika Ghosh called the speech “typically theatrical” and accused the Modi-led government of “kneeling before the United States.”

Her party colleague Kalyan Banerjee echoed similar sentiments, saying, “There was nothing new. No answer has been given for the question we raised. We are proud of our armed forces and we are with our Prime Minister, we said this already. We just need answers to two questions: why were 26 people killed? This is the inefficiency of the government. Why didn’t he call out President Trump, when he tried to claim credit?”

NDA Allies Laud PM Modi: 'Exposed Congress And Its Allies'

In stark contrast, BJP leaders and NDA allies hailed Modi’s Lok Sabha speech as decisive and inspiring. Union Minister of State Sukanta Majumdar asserted, “PM Narendra Modi absolutely exposed Congress and its allies’ attitude. The way Indian Army and the country showed its capabilities, PM Narendra Modi presented it before the nation.”

BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi praised the clarity and impact of the speech. “We all heard him speak and after hearing him, I think we are all speechless… I think all 140 crore people got to know everything about Operation Sindoor. The mask of Opposition parties has been taken off. Congress should self-introspect, today they spoke what they should not have spoken.”

Actor-turned-politician and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut called the address “dhamakedaar” (explosive).

LJP (Ramvilas) MP Shambhavi Chaudhary also lauded the Prime Minister’s articulation. “PM Narendra Modi kept forward India’s stand in a very well-articulated way. It was necessary to show a mirror to the opposition. The opposition had crossed all limits by taking Pakistan’s side and indulging in politics of appeasement.”

According to PTI, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya added that the speech will be remembered for its “clarity on India’s defence strategy, foreign policy, and cross-border hostility handling.” 

Jagdambika Pal and Ravi Shankar Prasad similarly praised the Prime Minister for “clarifying that no world leader pressured India”. Prasad asserted that “this is a new India… PM Modi clearly said that he was not pressured by anyone in the world.”

On Modi's response to Trump's assertions, BJP MP Ravi Kishan remarked, "This is a big truth. PM Modi has said today what the Opposition wanted to hear. Opposition was misleading. Truth has come out today..."

Modi Defends Operation Sindoor, Refutes US Pressure Led To Ceasefire

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while replying to the debate, asserted in the House that “no leader of any country asked India to stop Operation Sindoor.” He lamented that while the world supported India, the Congress and its allies failed to back the nation’s armed forces.

He detailed a conversation with US Vice President JD Vance on the night of May 9, stating that he was warned of a possible Pakistani attack. “I told him that if Pakistan attacks India, our attack would be much bigger as we will respond to bullets with cannons.”

Modi claimed that Pakistani airbases targeted by Indian forces were “still in ICU” and that the masterminds of the April 22 attack continued to suffer sleepless nights.

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