Speaking to the Indian diaspora in Washington, DC, BJP MP Shashank Mani underscored the need to eliminate fear as a fundamental step toward defeating terrorism and building an empowered, inclusive India.
“The core idea of terrorism is to instill fear in people’s minds. But once fear is gone, beautiful things happen,” Mani said during the address. Emphasizing a citizen-led approach to national progress, he added, “Our path to Viksit Bharat (Developed India) will be bottom-up and citizen-driven.”
He also highlighted the government’s commitment to empowering women, referring to the upcoming legislation that will ensure 33% reservation for women in Parliament. “We apologise that this table doesn’t have a woman representative… but this is exactly what we’re working to change,” Mani noted.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, also part of the Indian parliamentary delegation visiting the US, echoed Mani’s sentiment by sharing a chilling account from the recent Pahalgam terror attack. He described how a woman, after witnessing her husband’s murder, screamed to be killed as well—only for the terrorists to spare her, instructing her to live and spread the horror. “That’s the real goal of terrorism—to divide, to paralyze with fear,” Tharoor said.
Tharoor affirmed that the purpose of the delegation’s visit was to share India’s ordeal following the April 22 Pahalgam attack and to seek solidarity from US lawmakers. “We received nothing but strong, unconditional support across party lines here. Our strategic partnership with the US is real, and they’ve stood by us in this fight against terrorism,” he said.
He also praised the attention and warmth shown by American legislators despite their tight schedules. “They found time for us, they engaged with us, and it was all constructive.”
The Indian delegation includes members from multiple parties: Shambhavi Chaudhary (Lok Janshakti Party), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha), G M Harish Balayogi (TDP), Shashank Mani Tripathi, Tejasvi Surya, and Bhubaneswar Kalita (BJP), Mallikarjun Devda (Shiv Sena), Milind Deora (Shiv Sena), and former Indian Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu.
This visit is part of India’s broader diplomatic initiative under Operation Sindoor, aimed at securing global support following the recent escalation in terrorist attacks, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir.
