Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, who was part of the all-party delegations that travelled abroad to convey India’s stance on terrorism, on Monday questioned the effectiveness of these trips, while asking pointed questions to the Centre on the Pahalgam terror attack.
Less than a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met all the delegations following their return, Abhishek said: “After reaching out to 33 countries post-Pahalgam in the last one month, how many extended explicit support to India?”
Asserting that his concerns mirrored the feedback and questions he had received from civil society members and citizens across the five Asian countries his delegation visited, Abhishek spoke about “the lack of accountability and transparency” by the government over the attack that left 26 dead.
In a comprehensive post, Abhishek raised four other areas of concern besides diplomacy. On the border breach and civilian casualties, he demanded to know how four terrorists had “managed to infiltrate” and carry out the attack. There must be accountability for “the massive breach in national security”, the TMC leader said.
Speaking on “the intelligence failure” behind the attack, Abishek questioned the one-year extension granted to Intelligence Bureau (IB) chief Tapan Kumar Deka barely a month later. “If this was an intelligence failure, why was the IB chief granted a one-year extension… Why was he rewarded rather than held accountable? What is the compulsion?” Abhishek posted.
He added: “If the Government of India can conveniently use Pegasus spyware against Opposition leaders (including me), journalists and even judges, what stops it from using the same tools against terrorist networks and suspects?”
On the status of the Pahalgam terrorists, Abhishek sought clarity on the fate of the four responsible for the “brutal, religion-based massacre”. He asked if they were dead or alive, and if neutralised, why the government had failed to issue a clear statement. He also questioned the government’s silence if they had not yet been apprehended.
Abhishek asked when India intended to “reclaim” Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) and why the government had not officially responded to US President Donald Trump’s claim that he brokered the ceasefire between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor with promises of trade. The ceasefire had “disregarded… the emotions of 140 crore Indians”, Abhishek said, and asked what led to such a “compromise” after the nation had united behind the Armed Forces.
He said it was a surprise that despite India being one of the world’s largest economies, and the Centre projecting the country as a “Vishwaguru”, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank had approved significant financial assistance and long-term investments to Pakistan immediately after the attack. He questioned how a nation “repeatedly involved in cross-border terrorism” escaped global scrutiny and was seemingly rewarded, and why Pakistan was appointed vice-chair of the United Nations Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee barely a month later.
Abhishek concluded his post by highlighting that over Rs 2 lakh crore had been spent on external affairs over the past 10 years, asserting that “the Indian public deserves transparency, accountability and results – not silence and spin”.
Following the TMC leader’s post on X, its Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien released a video supporting him. “Someone needed to call this government out. Someone needed to hold this government accountable. Someone needed to ask five direct questions,” he said, adding that the government’s silence on these critical issues was unacceptable.
Abhishek was a part of the delegation led by JD(U) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha, and as part of his tour, travelled on May 21 to Japan, followed by South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. The other members of his delegation included former diplomat Mohan Kumar; BJP MPs Brij Lal, Aparajita Sarangi, Pradan Baruah and Hemang Joshi; and CPI(M) MP John Brittas.
Abhishek was not initially among the delegation members announced by the government, which had instead chosen cricketer-turned-politician and Baharampur MP Yusuf Pathan to represent the TMC. After criticising the Centre for not consulting the TMC, party chief Mamata Banerjee withdrew Pathan’s name and sent Abhishek as his replacement.
