Opposition parties in Lok Sabha question the government on accountability for the Pahalgam terror attack, ‘ineffective’ foreign policy

Opposition leaders, speaking in the Lok Sabha on the second day of the debate on Operation Sindoor on Tuesday (July 29, 2025), targeted the Narendra Modi government over “intelligence failure” and the “lack of security” that resulted in the Pahalgam terror attack and sought to fix responsibility.

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They questioned the “abrupt ceasefire announcement” on social media by U.S. President Donald Trump and attacked India’s foreign policy for being unable to isolate Pakistan.

Lok Sabha member from Wayanad and Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra asserted that leadership was not just about taking credit but also about owning responsibility. Ms. Vadra said that Mr. Trump announcing the ceasefire reflected the Prime Minister‘s “irresponsibility”.

Taking on Home Minister Amit Shah, who, quoting former Union Minister Salman Khurshid, had said that “Sonia Gandhi cried for Batla House terrorists”, Ms. Vadra replied, “I would like to answer to that point, my mother cried when her husband was martyred by terrorists.”

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No self-praise by the government about Operation Sindoor can take away their culpability that tourists were left without any security, she said. “I want to ask whose responsibility is the safety of the country’s citizens? Is it not the responsibility of this country’s Prime Minister, Home Minister, Defence Minister?,” Ms. Vadra asked.

She read out the names of the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack. When BJP members shouted that they were all Hindus, she replied, “They were all Bharatiyas”.

In a sharp attack, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP Kanimozhi alleged that the government had failed the people of India and it was forced to send Opposition leaders on multi-party delegations for global outreach post Operation Sindoor.

Also Read | Amit Shah must take responsibility for ‘security lapse’ at Pahalgam: Mallikarjun Kharge in Rajya Sabha

“We had to go because you have failed the people of India. The vishwaguru has failed us… Today it has become a blame game. Even today, the Home Minister, in his speech, only concentrated on blaming the Opposition,” she said.

Former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav said the Modi government had claimed that after the dilution of Article 370, there would be no more terror attacks but it was forced to launch Operation Sindoor after the Pahalgam attack.

“The launch of Operation Sindoor post the Pahalgam attack is itself a symbol of the government’s failure,” Mr. Yadav said, adding, “During Operation Sindoor, no country stood by us. This is a dark phase for India’s foreign diplomacy”.

The SP chief also questioned the timing of Operation Mahadev, to eliminate the terrorists involved in the April 22 terror attack, on the day Parliament started the debate.