Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri strongly criticized the Congress party on Wednesday for questioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent telephonic engagement with former US President Donald Trump, accusing the opposition of persistently trying to tarnish India’s global image.
In a sharp rebuke, Puri said, “Some of my friends in the lie-producing factory constantly said there was no invitation. When a productive 35-minute exchange happens, they reference an earlier conversation from January and say it’s not a real readout. Let their readout come.”
Calling the Congress’s remarks “hallucinatory” and “fake narratives,” Puri added, “I get the feeling that they are always looking for some way in which they can show India down.”
The exchange in question refers to a 35-minute phone conversation between PM Modi and former US President Trump held on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Canada, which could not take place in person due to Trump’s early departure from Calgary. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri confirmed that Modi briefed Trump on Operation Sindoor and firmly reiterated India’s position that it does not accept any form of third-party mediation in its bilateral issues with Pakistan.
“Prime Minister Modi made it clear to President Trump that during this entire episode, at no time were issues like an India-US trade deal or mediation with Pakistan discussed,” Misri clarified, noting that the decision to halt military action was a bilateral arrangement between India and Pakistan, made through military channels at Pakistan’s request.
Misri also emphasized that there is “complete political unanimity” in India against any external mediation on Indo-Pak relations.
The controversy erupted after Congress leader Jairam Ramesh criticized the Modi government, alleging that India had suffered a “triple jhatka” in diplomacy. He pointed to the alleged invitation of Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir for a one-on-one lunch with President Trump, despite Munir’s inflammatory remarks linked to the Pahalgam terror attacks.
“This is a setback for Indian diplomacy. We are quiet about it, we have not objected to it,” Ramesh said.
The BJP, however, maintains that India’s foreign policy remains firm, self-assured, and immune to outside pressure — accusing the Congress party of manufacturing disinformation to score political points at the expense of national interest.
