New Delhi: A day after Congress general secretary in-charge for communications, Jairam Ramesh said the party believed in the “legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people”, but also spoke about “ensuring legitimate national security interests of the Israeli people”, the party made a shift in its stand following objection by some leaders, ThePrint has learnt.
On Monday, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) expressed anguish over the Israel-Hamas war, reiterating it support for the rights of the Palestinian people to land, self government and to live with dignity and respect. The CWC resolution, however, skipped any mention of the attack on Israel by the Hamas — the Palestinian militant group in control of the Gaza Strip since 2007.
After a four-hour meeting of the CWC, the party’s resolution, while talking about the situation in the Middle East, skipped any mention of the attack on Israel.
“The CWC expresses its dismay and anguish on the war that has broken out in the Middle East where over a thousand people have been killed in the last two days. The CWC reiterates it long-standing support of the rights of the Palestinian people to land, self government and to live with dignity and respect,” read the Congress resolution.
It added: “The CWC calls for an immediate ceasefire and for negotiations to begin on all the outstanding issues including the imperative issues that have given rise to the present conflict.”
On Sunday, Ramesh, in a post on social media platform X (previously Twitter), had said, “The Indian National Congress condemns the brutal attacks on the people of Israel. The Indian National Congress has always believed that the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people for a life of self-respect, equality and dignity must be fulfilled only through a process of dialogue and negotiations while ensuring the legitimate national security interests of the Israeli people. Violence of any type never provides a solution and must stop.”
During the early hours of Saturday, Hamas launched an unprecedented aerial and ground attack on Israel, with members of Hamas’ military wing Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades reportedly taking over parts of the southern Israeli towns of Netivot and Ofakim.
In response, Israel launched a large-scale counter-offensive — ‘Swords of Iron’ — with reports suggesting Israeli Air Force fighter jets targeted multiple locations linked to the Palestinian militant outfit.
According to media reports, so far around 700 people have been killed in Israel and around 400 in Gaza.
Also read: Muslim countries on Hamas attack: Condemnation & calls for ‘restraint’, but some blame Israel
‘Adopt same stance as in past’
According to leaders present at the CWC meeting, the party’s stance on Palestine was one of the first issues to be raised. Ramesh Chennithala, a senior leader from Kerala, was the one to broach the subject, sources told ThePrint
“Ramesh Chennithala said that the party had been supporting the Palestinian people since the time of Indira Gandhi and Jairam Ramesh’s statement did not make it clear that we are with Palestine,” said a CWC member.
A second party leader claimed that when Chennithala said this, there was applause from some sections of the committee.
“A number of members were discussing the party stance on the issue since the beginning of the meeting and it was decided we will go adopt the same stance as we have adopted in the past resolutions,” said the second leader.
India has traditionally walked a tightrope on the Isarel-Palestine issue — standing for the interest of the Palestinian people, while also advocating better ties with Israel. Since Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister, however, there has reportedly been a shift in this.
On Saturday, following the Hamas attack on Israel, Modi posted on X, “Deeply shocked by the news of terrorist attacks in Israel. Our thoughts and prayers are with the innocent victims and their families. We stand in solidarity with Israel at this difficult hour.”
(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)