
‘How many countries backed India', asks TMC MP part of Operation Sindoor global diplomatic outreach
Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, who was part of the Indian delegations that had visited 33 countries in recent weeks to convey India's stand on terrorism in the wake of the Pahalgam attack, on Monday, questioned the diplomatic success of the outreach.
The Trinamool Congress National General Secretary asked how many countries extended explicit support to India after the outreach.
Banerjee said that Indian citizens deserve transparency and accountability on the government's response to the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, which left 26 dead.
He asked 'How did four terrorists manage to infiltrate the border and launch an attack that killed 26 innocent civilians? Where is the accountability for this massive breach in national security?'
He also questioned whether the four terrorists responsible for the 'brutal, religion-based massacre' had been brought to justice.
Banerjee asked whether the attack was the result of an intelligence failure, and questioned the one-year extension granted to Intelligence Bureau chief Tapan Kumar Deka barely a month after the attack.
'Why was he rewarded rather than held accountable?' the Trinamool Congress general secretary asked. 'What is the compulsion?'
He also raised questions about United States President Donald Trump's claims that he brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.
On Monday, the party's Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien reiterated that it had been 55 days since the terror attack and demanded answers to the questions Banerjee had posed to the Centre earlier in the day.
On Tuesday, the party highlighted that it had been 24 hours since Banerjee first demanded answers.
'The nation still waits,' the party said. 'The silence is deafening.'
It's been 24 hours since Shri @abhishekaitc asked 5 crucial questions that demand answers.
The nation still waits. The silence is deafening. #5Sawal pic.twitter.com/X2G42X3RDC
— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) June 17, 2025
Banerjee's questions came less than a week after Prime Minister Modi hosted members of Indian delegations – comprising former diplomats and MPs – who had visited 33 countries in recent weeks to convey India's stand on cross-border terrorism from Pakistan.
Banerjee was not initially among the delegation members announced by the government, which had picked Baharampur MP Yusuf Pathan to represent the party. After criticising the Union government for unilaterally deciding who would represent the Trinamool Congress, party chief Mamata Banerjee withdrew Pathan's name and sent Banerjee instead.
The diplomatic outreach by New Delhi came in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack and the subsequent Indian military strikes – codenamed Operation Sindoor – on what New Delhi claimed were terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
The Pakistan Army retaliated to Indian strikes by repeatedly shelling Indian villages along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. At least 22 Indian civilians and eight defence personnel were killed.
On May 10, India and Pakistan reached an 'understanding' to halt firing following a four-day conflict.
New Delhi's announcement on the decision to stop military action came minutes after Trump claimed on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to the ceasefire.
However, India has said that the decision to stop firing was taken bilaterally and that there was no intervention by the US. New Delhi has also maintained that ' the issue of trade did not come up ' in any discussion between Indian and US leaders.
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