• Congress-led opposition boycotts Amit Shah’s speech, calling PM’s absence ‘insult to upper house’
• FO dismisses Indian baseless claims, calls out BJP’s belligerent posturing

ISLAMABAD: Indian opposition parties walked out of parliament on Wednesday evening over Narendra Modi’s decision to sit out a debate on the India-Pakistan conflict, Indian media reported.

Just as Home Minister Amit Shah rose to speak to conclude the debate on Operation Sindoor in the Rajya Sabha, the Congress-led opposition resorted to hooting and sloganeering to protest PM Modi’s absence from the house, the Times of India reported.

Congress President and Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge reportedly said it “was an insult to the upper house that PM Modi, despite being in parliament, refused to come.”

“After 16 hours of discussion, we expected the PM to attend House proceedings. Whatever questions were raised relate to the PM, not that you (Amit Shah) are not capable to respond. Also, the PM not being here is a disrespect to this House,” The Print quoted Mr Kharge as saying.

Opposition lawmakers also resorted to sloganeering as the house witnessed heated exchanges between the opposition leaders and the BJP minister, as the former demanded that PM Modi brief parliament.

Shah, however, said it was the government’s discretion to pick its line-up of speakers to present its case in parliament. At this, the opposition staged a walkout.

In his speech, Shah criticised the Congress party, claiming it “gave away a portion of Kashmir to Pakistan, but the Narendra Modi-led government will get it back”.

He also criticised former home minister and Congress leader P. Chidambaram for his assessment that there was no solid proof linking Pakistan to the Pahalgam attack, while claiming that the previous government did not do enough to rein in terrorism. Soon after Mr Shah began his speech, the opposition staged a walkout from parliament.

According to The Print, the Indian home minister cited figures to suggest that terrorism was ‘nearing its decline’ in India. “Between 2004 and 2014, a total of 7,217 terrorist incidents were recorded. However, from June 2015 to May 2025, the number of incidents significantly decreased to 2,150, reflecting a 70 percent reduction in terrorist activities,” he was quoted as saying.

“There was a time when Pakistan didn’t even need to send terrorists, as our own Kashmiri youth would pick up weapons. But I’m presenting data from the last six months—no Kashmiri youth has been recruited into any terrorist organisation. All those being neutralised now are Pakistanis,” he alleged.

‘Baseless assertions’

In response to the allegations levelled in parliament, Pakistan’s Foreign Office issued a strong response dismissing the accusations.

In a statement issued on the parliamentary debate, FO Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said, “Pakistan categorically rejects the baseless assertions and provocative claims made by the Indian leaders during the Lok Sabha debate on the so-called ‘Operation Sindoor’.”

These statements reflect a dangerous tendency to distort facts, justify aggression and glorify conflict for domestic consumption, he added.

According to Dawn.com, the FO said that “instead of misleading their compatriots, the Indian leaders would be well-advised to acknowledge the losses incurred by their armed forces and accept the active role played by the third parties in realising the ceasefire”.

India had not used the immediate offer made by PM Shehbaz Sharif for a transparent and independent probe into the Pahalgam attack but had instead chosen the “path of belligerence and aggression”, the statement added.

Published in Dawn, July 31st, 2025