Senior Congress leader and former External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Thursday extended his full support to Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who is currently facing intense criticism from the NDA over his controversial "Narendra, surrender" comment.
Speaking at the Congress' state headquarters in Bhopal, Gandhi had accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of surrendering to United States President Donald Trump. He claimed this reflected a historical pattern of the BJP and the RSS yielding to external pressure.
Gandhi had said, "Jaise udhar se Trump ne ishara kiya, phone uthaya, kaha Modi ji kya kar rahe ho. Narendra... Surrender aur ji huzur kar Modi ji ne Trump ke ishare ka palan kiya," implying that Prime Minister Modi obediently followed the cues given by Trump.
Supporting Gandhi's remarks, Khurshid, in an interview with IANS, said, "Rahul Gandhi is right. I support him. I belong to his party and follow his guidance for my politics. It is very clear, I am in Rahul Gandhi's party, I support him, and I act according to his directions."
When asked about Gandhi's remarks being played on Pakistani television channels to support anti-India narratives, Khurshid dismissed the question, stating, "We strongly oppose what Pakistan has done.
We want Pakistan to be brought to a position where it can never promote terrorism against India. That is our only concern. We don't watch Pakistani TV; our Indian channels are enough for us."
Khurshid was also part of the all-party delegation led by JD(U) MP Sanjay Jha, which visited Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia as part of Operation Sindoor Outreach.The mission aimed to highlight India's stance on Pakistan-sponsored cross-border terrorism.
During the international visit, Khurshid, who had served as External Affairs Minister during the UPA government, also voiced concerns over political divisions back home and questioned why it had become so difficult for some to support patriotic causes.
In a post on X, he wrote, "When on a mission against terrorism, to carry India's message to the world, it's distressing that people at home are calculating political allegiances. Is it so difficult to be patriotic?"
When asked about this tweet, Khurshid strongly defended his position and took a dig at his critics, saying, "Is it so difficult to be patriotic? Why isn't anyone answering me? If someone is saying something for the nation, let them say it.
Why create problems over it? Saying something in the interest of the country is not the wrong thing to do. It is the right thing to do. Everyone should support what is said for the nation's good."