The Congress leader repeated his demand for Prime Minister Modi to address Donald Trump’s claims of using tariff threats to mediate the May 10 ceasefire between New Delhi and Islamabad.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has escalated his critique of Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding US President Donald Trump’s repeated claims of mediating the 2025 India-Pakistan conflict ceasefire. Speaking at a joint rally in poll-bound Darbhanga, Bihar, Gandhi asserted that PM Modi is “scared” of the US President and must publicly challenge his claims.
The Demand for Clarification in Bihar
Addressing the public on Wednesday, Rahul Gandhi urged the Prime Minister to make a clear statement regarding the US President’s narrative.
The Congress leader insisted that the next time PM Modi visits Bihar for campaigning, “he must say that the US President is lying about ‘stopping’ the India-Pakistan conflict.”
This is not the first time Gandhi, who is the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, has challenged PM Modi on this issue. During a Parliament debate on Operation Sindoor in July, he had dared Modi to confront the claims directly, saying, “If he has the courage, he will say here that Donald Trump is a liar.”
Trump’s Repeated Mediation Claims
The controversy centers on Donald Trump’s assertion, repeated multiple times, that he used a hardline approach involving threats of imposing 200 per cent tariffs and refusing trade deals to pressure India and Pakistan into a ceasefire. Trump has dramatically claimed that this intervention prevented a potential “nuclear war” and that he “settled the India-Pakistan conflict in 24 hours.”
India’s Consistent Denial
Despite Trump’s persistence, India has repeatedly and firmly affirmed that no third-party mediation was involved in reaching the ceasefire understanding with Pakistan.
- The Conflict: The hostilities began after India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. This operation was in retaliation for the April 22 terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which killed 26 people. Pakistan responded with attempted retaliatory drone attacks and shelling.
- The Ceasefire: India maintains that the ceasefire understanding was reached on May 10 after the Pakistani Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) reached out directly to his Indian counterpart to cease all hostilities.