23 hours ago
Last Updated:July 30, 2025, 13:55 IST
Rahul Gandhi criticised PM Modi for not rebutting Trump's ceasefire claims, accusing him of using the armed forces to protect his image
Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using the armed forces to protect his image after the Pahalgam attack and dared him to categorically rebut US President Donald Trump's India-Pakistan ceasefire claims. (Photos: Sansad TV)
Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, on Wednesday expressed concerns over the India-US tariff deal and said President Donald Trump would press Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the impending agreement.
“Why is he saying this? He wants a trade deal; he will push (PM Modi) there. You will see how this trade deal pans out," the Congress MP said when asked to comment on Trump’s statement on the ceasefire and tariffs.
Reacting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in the Lok Sabha during the Operation Sindoor debate, the Leader of Opposition said, “It is obvious that the Prime Minister has not said that Trump is lying. Everyone knows that he is not able to speak. That is the reality. If PM Modi speaks, then he (Donald Trump) will say things openly and keep the entire truth, that is why he *(PM Modi) is not able to speak," he said.
When asked if India is going to pay high tariffs between 20-25%, Trump said, “Yeah, I think so. India is my friend. They ended the war with Pakistan at my request…The deal with India is not finalised. India has been a good friend, but India has charged more tariffs than almost any other country."
The trade deal between the US and India has not been announced yet.
Rahul Gandhi Dares PM Modi To Call Trump ‘Liar’
Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using the armed forces to protect his image after the Pahalgam attack and dared him to categorically rebut US President Donald Trump’s India-Pakistan ceasefire claims.
“If Modi ji has even 50 per cent of the courage that Indira Gandhi had, then clearly he must say in Parliament — Donald Trump is lying," he said.
Modi, who spoke after Gandhi, affirmed that no leader of any country asked India to stop Operation Sindoor but lamented that while the nation got support from the entire world, the Congress and its allies could not stand behind the valour of the nation’s soldiers.
Speaking with reporters after the debate ended, Gandhi said, “Narendra Modi did not clearly say that Trump is lying. Trump has said 29 times that he brought about a ceasefire, but Narendra Modi did not respond to it." “The most notable thing was that throughout the entire speech, the Prime Minister did not mention China. The whole country knows that China helped Pakistan, but the word China did not come out of the Prime Minister’s mouth," Gandhi said.
Speaking in the Lower House, Gandhi claimed the government revealed sensitive details about Operation Sindoor to Pakistan, soon after it was launched.
“Yesterday, I watched Rajnath Singh ji’s speech. He said that Operation Sindoor began at 1:05 in the morning and lasted for 22 minutes. He said a very shocking thing: that at 1:35, we called Pakistan and told them that we had hit non-military targets and we didn’t want escalation. These are the words of the Defence Minister of India," the former Congress president said.
“You told Pakistan exactly what you would do: that you would not target military establishments, and you didn’t want escalation. That’s surrender. Immediate surrender in 30 minutes," Gandhi said, slamming the government.
He cited remarks by the Defence Attache in Indonesia, Group Captain Shiv Kumar, to claim that there were constraints by the political leadership to not attack the Pakistani military establishment and their air defences.
Why was the Pakistani government told that India would neither attack their army infrastructure nor their air defence, and why were the hands of the Indian Air Force tied, Gandhi asked.
He alleged that the goal of this exercise was to “protect the image of the PM" as he had “blood of Pahalgam victims on his hands".
(with PTI, ANI inputs)
Saurabh Verma covers general, national and international day-to-day news for News18.com as a Senior Sub-editor. He keenly observes politics. You can follow him on Twitter --twitter.com/saurabhkverma19
Saurabh Verma covers general, national and international day-to-day news for News18.com as a Senior Sub-editor. He keenly observes politics. You can follow him on Twitter --twitter.com/saurabhkverma19
News politics 'Trump Will Push Us': Rahul Gandhi Raises Concern On India-US Tariff Deal
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users’ views, not News18’s. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Read More
