The BJP on Saturday hit out at Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sonia Gandhi over her article criticising the Centre’s “silence” over Gaza.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla accused Sonia of reducing India’s foreign policy to “vote bank Niti,” and defended the union government, saying India today maintains ties with both Israel and Palestine. “Those who are penning articles on Gaza, tweet on Rafah, carry the bags, are silent eloquently on Hindus in Dhaka. It shows that even Videsh Niti becomes the subject of vote bank Niti,” Poonawalla said.
He added, “They are eulogising Hamas, but they have not a word to offer on the deadly terror strikes in Israel…. For years, no relations were maintained with Israel out of vote bank considerations.”
‘Policy of multi-alignment’
Poonawalla said that currently, India had maintained good relations with Israel and Palestine, while highlighting Prime Minister Narendra Modi receiving Palestine’s highest civilian honour. “Today we are in a situation where we talk to both Israel and Palestine. The highest civilian honour of Palestine has been given to PM Modi… We have seen that whether it’s Russia or Ukraine, whether it’s America or Iran, India is in a unique position where it can talk to all…” Poonawalla said.
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He further accused Sonia of “misleading and putting vote bank Niti or a Videsh Niti.” He added that New Delhi was not following the “policy of non-alignment.” “…This is not a policy of non-alignment. It’s a policy of multi-alignment or of all aligned,” Poonawalla said.
What Sonia Gandhi said
In her criticism of the Modi government, Sonia had argued that India’s response to the Gaza conflict was against both its “morality” and “national interest.”
“Senior Israeli leaders, down from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his senior cabinet colleagues themselves, have called for the ‘complete siege’ and ‘total annihilation’ of Gaza,” Sonia said in an opinion piece published in The Indian Express. Gandhi said that while the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas on Israel was “dastardly” and “absolutely unacceptable”, the subsequent Israeli military response had been marked by “wanton cruelty and barbarity”.
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She further added that India “remains the lone voice of silence”, and referred to it as “morally reprehensible.” “Our sacrifice of our strategic interest and morality has yielded us nothing but the friendship between Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Netanyahu, who is now under attack all over the world, including in the USA,” Sonia said.
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