Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Nishikant Dubey has launched a sharp attack on the former UPA government, alleging that India’s decision to resume dialogue with Pakistan following the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks was made under pressure from the United States.
In a post shared on X, Dubey cited the 2009 meeting between then-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, as the first formal engagement between the two nations after the deadly attacks that claimed 180 lives and left over 300 injured.
“Pakistan attacked Mumbai on 26 November 2008. The fire of the pyres had not even cooled. Was dialogue initiated under U.S. pressure without retaliating against Pakistan? Did Prime Minister Manmohan Singh make such a statement in the Lok Sabha?” Dubey questioned.
The BJP MP went on to list other diplomatic engagements between India and Pakistan in 2009, alleging a pattern of appeasement. “Did a meeting of Foreign Ministers happen in January 2009 or not? Did Manmohan Singh meet President Zardari in June in Russia with the mediation of a third country? And did he go to Sharm el-Sheikh in July 2009 under American pressure to reach an agreement with Pakistan’s Prime Minister?” he asked.
Dubey accused the Congress party of adopting a “soft” stance on terrorism and being influenced by foreign powers. He referenced another terrorist incident in 2011 in Mumbai, where 26 people were killed and 200 injured, saying, “Such incidents show Pakistan’s continued support to terrorism. In contrast, PM Modi raised India’s head high with Operation Sindoor. After years, Pakistan is now in panic. Congress is hand in glove with terrorist Pakistan. The public be damned, it seems.”
In an earlier post, Dubey had also criticised Congress for allegedly signing a nuclear agreement with Pakistan in 1988 under U.S. pressure. He posted a purportedly declassified letter from then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan to Rajiv Gandhi, claiming it revealed America’s influence over India-Pakistan talks during the Cold War.
“That letter made me feel ashamed,” Dubey wrote. “The agenda for India-Pakistan discussions was set by the U.S. President. Even on Afghanistan, what we discussed with our friend Soviet Russia was based on the American agenda. Was this the Shimla Agreement or slavery? Was Indira Gandhi’s Iron Lady image a myth? Were we truly a sovereign nation at that time?”
Dubey currently serves as the MP from Godda, Jharkhand, and is part of a multi-party Indian parliamentary delegation visiting West Asia and North Africa. The delegation, led by BJP MP Baijayant Jay Panda, has already toured Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait, and is expected to arrive in Algeria on May 30 for the next leg of its official visit.
