Opposition Slams Pahalgam Security Lapses in Lok Sabha, Questions PM Modi’s Absence and Counters Trump Remarks
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi remained absent in the Lok Sabha on July 28 as parliament began a special discussion on the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor. This despite the opposition’s longstanding demand for a special session and a discussion in the presence of the prime minister.
During the discussion, which continued till after midnight, opposition members raised questions about security lapses that led to the terror attack on April 22, and the ceasefire between India and Pakistan that was announced by US President Donald Trump after four days of military conflict between the two countries. While opposition members questioned why the terrorists who had carried out the attack had not been nabbed and the government’s inability to openly condemn Trump’s statements, union ministers denied Trump’s claims while remaining silent on the Pahalgam terror attack probe or the lapses that had led to the attack.
Union minister for defence Rajnath Singh, without naming Trump said that the hostilities were not stopped “under any pressure” while union minister for external affairs S. Jaishankar denied any conversation between Trump and Modi between April and June. The denials in parliament took place even as Trump made the claim again while visiting Scotland on the same day.
‘100 days after attack, Pahalgam attackers not caught’
Congress’ deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi who opened the debate for the opposition said that 100 days after the Pahalgam attack, the attackers have not been captured and demanded that union home minister Amit Shah take responsibility.
“The country wants to know that it has been 100 days since the Pahalgam attack but this government has not been able to catch these five terrorists. They must have been provided shelter, and helped to flee but even after 100 days the government has no answer. Today, you have drones, Pegasus, satellites, CRPF, BSF, CISF and the home minister had visited just a few days before to review the security yet you are not able to catch them,” he said.
Gogoi said that while Shah claims that spine of terrorism has been broken, yet attacks like Uri (2016), Pulwama (2019) and Pahalgam (2025) take place.
“In the end, who takes responsibility? The Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. No, the home minister has to take responsibility. You cannot hide behind the LG,” he said.
Gogoi also said that when the attack took place, Modi was in Saudi Arabia. While he returned after the attack, instead of visiting Pahalgam he went to poll-bound Bihar
NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule said that there can be no celebration till the Pahalgam attackers are captured.
“Operation Sindoor is not complete till you find those terrorists. We can pat each other’s backs that everything is going well. But everything is not going well. Until those terrorists are caught we cannot celebrate,” she said.
Samajwadi Party MP Ramashankar Rajbhar also accused the government of not securing India’s borders and questioned the decision to stop the conflict with the ceasefire.
“The country wanted Operation Tandoor, not Operation Sindoor after 17 days,” he said.
Referring to Trump’s claims of mediation, Rajbhar said: “We felt proud that our PM is Vishwaguru. But we found that Vishwaguru is sitting in America.”
Why did Trump announce the ceasefire?
Not just Rajbhar, the discussion saw opposition members questioning the government and Modi for not calling out Trump who continues to claim that he had mediated the ceasefire between India and Pakistan on May 10.
“Narendra Modi, why have you not posted once on X that what you have said is incorrect. You cannot show your courage to that President. The moment you stand in front of the US President, your height shrinks to 5 feet and your chest from 56 inches to 36 inches,” said TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee.
“Why are you so afraid of the US President?”
AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi questioned the efficacy of India’s foreign policy following Operation Sindoor and referred to Trump hosting Pakistan Field Marshal Asim Munir at the White House.
“Has your foreign policy succeeded? They are opposed to secularism in the Constitution but our Preamble mentions the word ‘sovereign’ which means we will decide our own action. Will a white man sitting in the White House announce a ceasefire on behalf of India? Is this your nationalism? If Uncle Sam makes this announcement how will it affect the morale of our forces who will think not my prime minister but a white man made the ceasefire announcement.”
Pointing to the Indian cricket team playing Pakistan in the upcoming Asia Cup, Owaisi said that while the Indian government has decided to stop trade, and put the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance, yet a cricket match will be played.
“You have said blood and water cannot flow together, talks and terror cannot go hand in hand. Those people who lost their lives in Basairan, will your conscience allow, that you have stopped trade, closed your airspace, stopped their ships, how will you play a cricket match with Pakistan? Will you be able to call those 25 families and say that we have avenged Operation Sindoor and now you watch a cricket match,” he said.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant said that while BJP leaders continue to say that Pakistan occupied Kashmir will be brought back, it failed to do so in this conflict.
“This was the time. Why didn’t you bring it back” he said.
Responding to the government’s stand that it was the Pakistani DGMO that had dialled his Indian counterpart asking for a ceasefire, that was also stated by defence minister Rajnath Singh in his opening statement, Sawant asked why an unconditional ceasefire was accepted.
“If Pakistan was begging us for a ceasefire, why was this accepted unconditionally? The US President keeps talking, and is talking till today that he stopped the conflict. Why did you accept an unconditional ceasefire?”
Sawant also said that “not a single country” stood beside India while the Modi government openly sided with Israel against Iran-the country that supplies oil to India.
Congress MP Praniti Shinde referred to Rome’s Colosseum and said that just as it was built to keep the public engaged in sports and entertainment, and divert their attention the government appeared to be doing the same
“Operation Sindoor was nothing but a ‘tamasha’ of the government in the media. No one is telling us what was achieved in this Operation. How many terrorists were caught? How many fighter jets did we lose? Who is responsible and whose mistake is this? It is the government’s responsibility to answer this. But this government runs away from answering any questions,” she said.
Ministers deny Trump mediation claim, remain silent on Pahalgam probe
While both the defence minister Singh and external affairs minister S Jaishankar delivered their first remarks in parliament on Monday, neither accepted Trump’s mediation claims.
Singh who spoke for close to an hour did not make any mention of the Pahalgam terror attack or name Trump. Instead he said that Operation Sindoor was not “stopped under any pressure.”
Instead he said that the decision to stop hostilities was taken because India had already achieved its “stated political and military objectives” and to say “the operation was stopped under any pressure is baseless and completely incorrect”.
Jaishankar on the other hand, addressed the questions being raised by opposition members on Trump’s continued claims said that there was no call between Modi and the US President between April 22 and June 17. Jaishankar also said that during the operation, India received calls from several countries in which it was made clear that “there will be no mediation”.
While Trump has claimed that he used trade as a leverage to bring the two countries from the brink of a nuclear war, Jaishankar said that at no point was there “any linkage with trade” in the conversations between India and US. His statement was backed by Union home minister Amit Shah, who accused the opposition of believing the leader of a foreign country and not the external affairs minister.
Jaishankar’s denial in parliament came as Trump repeated his claim in Turnberry, Scotland, standing alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Trump said that had it not been for him, “India would be fighting Pakistan.”
