11 April 2026
Opposition criticizes Modi government over Pakistan hosting US-Iran peace talks
As the leaders of the US and Iran gather in Pakistan to try to negotiate a ceasefire, many Indians are watching with narrowed eyes.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spent more than a decade carefully crafting India’s image as a global leader, at least domestically. For those who believe in that narrative, the emergence of rival Pakistan as an influential arbiter is difficult to embrace.
Even those who ‘can dismiss’Vishwaguru‘ The label, which translates as ‘Teacher of the World’, registers Islamabad’s diplomatic emergence as a failure of India’s foreign policy.
India’s largest national opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC), is placing the blame squarely on Modi.
“Government incompetence has allowed Pakistan to assert an important role in great-power competition in Asia, which would give it leverage over India on important bilateral matters through third parties, effectively internationalizing India-Pakistan affairs,” the INC said in a statement.
Akhilesh Yadav, another prominent opposition leader and Modi critic, said the BJP had “ruined our foreign policy.”
After Washington and Tehran agreed to a temporary ceasefire, he said, “At one time it seemed that India would become a world leader, but Pakistan is strengthening its foreign policy at the international level. India appears weak in foreign policy.”
The peace talks in Islamabad come after a difficult year for US-India relations.
While the two remain close partners in trade, security, defense and technology, a series of diplomatic disputes – US trade tariffs, Trump’s insistence that he broker peace between India and Pakistan, and New Delhi’s ties with Russia – have damaged India’s image as a diplomatic champion within the country.
What is the government’s stance?
Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar had earlier defended the government when opposition leaders raised the issue at an all-party meeting on the Middle East conflict.
Jaishankar had told Pakistan ‘Broker,’ a word that means ‘broker’ but has a negative connotation.
Recently, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India welcomes the ceasefire between America and Iran. Without commenting on Pakistan’s role as a mediator, he said, “As we have consistently advocated in the past, de-escalation, dialogue and diplomacy are necessary to bring an early end to the ongoing conflict.”