The Opposition on Thursday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “silence” on US President Donald Trump’s claim of an assurance that India would stop buying Russian oil.
In a post on X, Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi said: “PM Modi is frightened of Trump. Allows Trump to decide and announce that India will not buy Russian oil. Keeps sending congratulatory messages despite repeated snubs. Cancelled the Finance Minister’s visit to America. Skipped Sharm el-Sheikh. Doesn’t contradict him on Operation Sindoor.”
Congress general secretary (in-charge communications) Jairam Ramesh accused Modi of “outsourcing key decisions” to the US. “At 5:37 pm Indian Standard Time on May 10, 2025, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was the very first to announce that India has halted Operation Sindoor. President Trump has since claimed 51 times in five different countries that he had intervened to stop Operation Sindoor by using tariffs and trade as pressure tools. Yet our PM kept silent,” Ramesh said on X.
“Now President Trump has declared yesterday that PM Modi assured him that India would no longer import oil from Russia. PM Modi appears to have outsourced key decisions to America. His 56-inch chest has shrunk,” he said.
TMC deputy leader in Rajya Sabha Sagarika Ghose said “Trump’s claim must be directly answered”. “Has the Modi government given an assurance to Trump that it is stopping Russian oil purchase and, if not, is Trump’s claim false,” she said.
CPI(M) MP John Brittas asked if India would “surrender to the dictates of Trump”. “Amid this unending debate and speculation, we overlook the fact that consumers haven’t benefited from the so-called energy security we keep discussing,” he said.
“Oil prices in the international market dropped from $79 in January to $64.62 in April this year, and even fell below $60. Yet, fuel prices across India have remained largely unchanged. In fact, the excise duty on petrol and diesel was increased by Rs 2 per litre, and the price of an LPG cylinder rose by Rs 50. What is this energy security we are talking about? Whose security is it really,” he asked.
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Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said that “some delusions need to be debunked”. “Silence is betrayal in such a situation,” she said.
