India’s Leader of Opposition and Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi has said that India’s foreign policy had “collapsed” after he shared a clip of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s interview to Dutch broadcaster NOS and asked him to explain why India has been hyphenated with Pakistan, why no other country backed India in condemning Pakistan and who asked US President Donald Trump to “mediate” a ceasefire.
In a statement on X, Gandhi shared a clip of the interview where Jaishankar was being asked to respond to Trump’s claims of having “mediated” the ceasefire between India and Pakistan announced on May 10, after four days of tense military conflict following Operation Sindoor.
Since then, India has maintained that the cessation of hostilities between the two countries was decided “bilaterally” without making any direct references to Trump’s continued claims which have since included bringing back the two countries from brink of nuclear war and using trade as leverage to broker the ceasefire.
“Will JJ explain: Why has India been hyphenated with Pakistan? Why didn’t a single country back us in condemning Pakistan? Who asked Trump to “mediate” between India & Pakistan? India’s foreign policy has collapsed,” said Gandhi.
Will JJ explain:
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 23, 2025
• Why has India been hyphenated with Pakistan?
• Why didn’t a single country back us in condemning Pakistan?
• Who asked Trump to “mediate” between India & Pakistan?
India’s foreign policy has collapsed. https://t.co/m8q2lAFRm4
While Gandhi did not elaborate on what “JJ” stands for, Congress leaders have been referring to Jaishankar as “Jaichand Jaishankar” in a seeming reference to the poem ‘Prithviraj Raso’ in which Jaichand, a Rajput ruler, is said to be allied with Muhammad Ghori against another Rajput ruler, Prithviraj Chauhan.
Gandhi’s questions to Jaishankar come a day after he posed a series of questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on X. Gandhi shared a clip of Modi’s address to the nation on May 12 and wrote:
“Modiji, stop giving hollow speeches. Just tell me: Why did you believe Pakistan’s statement on terrorism? 2. Why did you sacrifice India’s interests by bowing to Trump? 3. Why does your blood boil only in front of cameras? You have compromised the honour of India!”
Earlier on May 17, Gandhi had said Jaishankar’s silence was “damning”. He had asked, “How many Indian aircraft did we lose because Pakistan knew? This wasn’t a lapse. It was a crime. And the nation deserves the truth.”