Delegation row: Congress leaders picked by govt should listen to their conscience, says party

New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday said it was not stopping anyone from being part of diplomatic delegations to be sent to various countries following Operation Sindoor and that its leaders who have been named at the instance of the government must listen to their conscience and contribute to the exercise.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh accused the government of politicising the exercise of choosing leaders for the delegations and having "malicious intent" with only one out of four Congress leaders nominated by the party making the cut.

On Saturday, the Congress said it was asked by the government to submit the names of four leaders for the all-party delegations to be sent abroad to explain India's stance on Pakistan-backed terrorism. It nominated Anand Sharma, Gaurav Gogoi, Syed Naseer Hussain, and Amrinder Singh Raja Warring.

Of the four, only Sharma has been included in the seven delegations that will be visiting various countries.

Four Congress leaders -- Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari, Amar Singh and Salman Khurshid -- who were not part of the list forwarded by the Congress have been included in the delegations by the government.

"They included only one leader out of the four names we sent. Four other names were added by the government, who are senior MPs and leaders of our party, they should listen to their conscience and contribute in the delegations," Ramesh told PTI.

"For the Congress, national interest is paramount. This matter should not be stretched and more politicisation is not appropriate in this regard," he said.

The Congress has not stopped anyone and all our MPs named in the delegations will go and contribute, he said.

The selection of Tharoor to head one of the delegations was frowned upon by the Congress, which accused the government of playing politics with a "mischievous" mindset.

Referring to Congress leader Salman Khurshid, Ramesh said the four names added by the government include a former foreign minister who is experienced in foreign policy.

With just one of its four nominated leaders being accommodated in the diplomatic outreach delegations, the Congress has said it proves the "complete insincerity" of the Narendra Modi government and shows the "cheap political games" it plays on serious national issues.

The opposition party, however, said the four eminent Congress MPs/leaders who have been included at the instance of the Modi government will go with the delegations.

Fifty-one political leaders, parliamentarians and former ministers cutting across party lines will be part of the seven delegations travelling to world capitals to put across India's resolve to tackle terrorism against the backdrop of Operation Sindoor.

In a statement last night, Ramesh said, "On May 16th morning, the Modi government asked for four names of Congress MPs/leaders to represent the Congress in the delegations being sent abroad to explain India's stance on terrorism from Pakistan."

These four names were conveyed in writing by the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju by 12 noon on May 16, he said in the statement.

"Very late tonight (May 17th), the full list of members of all delegations has been officially released. Most regrettably, only one of the four names suggested by the INC leadership has been included," he said.

"This proves the complete insincerity of the Modi government and shows the cheap political games it always plays on serious national issues," Ramesh said.

The four eminent Congress MPs/leaders who have been included at the instance of the Modi government will, of course, go with the delegations and make their contributions, he said.

"The Congress will not stoop to the pathetic level of the PM and the BJP. It will always uphold the finest traditions of Parliamentary democracy and not play partisan politics on national security issues, like the BJP does," Ramesh said.

The Congress wishes the delegations all the very best, he added.

Ramesh said these delegations should not, however, divert attention from the Congress' demands to have all-party meetings chaired by Modi and for a special session of Parliament to reiterate the resolution adopted on February 22, 1994, while also taking note of developments thereafter.

The seven delegations led by Baijayant Panda, Ravi Shankar Prasad (both BJP), Sanjay Kumar Jha (JDU), Shrikant Shinde (Shiv Sena), Shashi Tharoor (Congress), Kanimozhi (DMK) and Supriya Sule (NCP-SP) will visit a total of 32 countries and the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.

Each delegation comprises seven or eight political leaders and is assisted by former diplomats.

Of the 51 political leaders, 31 are part of the ruling NDA, while the remaining 20 are from the non-NDA parties.

"One mission. One message. One Bharat. Seven All-Party Delegations will soon engage key nations under #OperationSindoor, reflecting our collective resolve against terrorism," Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said in a post on X on Saturday.

The delegations include former Union ministers Ghulam Nabi Azad, M J Akbar, Anand Sharma, V Muraleedharan, Salman Khurshid, S S Ahluwalia, who are not members of parliament at present.