Operation Sindoor Outreach: Supriya Sule's Team In South Africa Spells Out India's Anti-Terror Stance
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India conveyed that Operation Sindoor targeted only terror hubs in Pakistan, and stressed that it has never shown aggression against another nation
During its visit to South Africa, the delegation led by Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) lawmaker Supriya Sule emphasised that Operation Sindoor was India's response to Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. India conveyed a clear message that its strikes targeted only the terror hubs in Pakistan, and stressed that it has never shown aggression against another nation. This response came after Pakistan-backed terrorists brutally killed 26 people, mostly Indian civilians, in cold blood on April 22 in Pahalgam.
The delegation aimed to expose Pakistan's terror activities and assert that any attack on India would be met with equal force. 'We were asked multiple questions about India's response, and we wanted to tell the people in South Africa that this is the new normal in our country. If anyone tries to bleed us, we will hit back in equal measure," a source told CNN-News18. 'This is a big exercise to sensitise the world and inform them that this will be India's policy moving forward, so they should not be surprised if India retaliates to protect its people."
The delegation, led by Sule, met Anna Moraka and Alvin Botes, deputy ministers of international relations and cooperation of South Africa. They also engaged with local politicians, think tanks, social media influencers, and the diaspora.
Supriya Sule said during her visit, 'We have come to South Africa to inform its people about what happened in India five weeks ago. There was a brutal attack on India's soul; 26 innocent people on vacation were shot. It's a very unfortunate incident. India has always sought peace, harmony, and growth in the neighbourhood. This attack shocked us all. India has always led globally for peace, and the deep friendship we have with South Africa, the country of Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela—two global icons of non-violence—makes us feel very close to South Africa."
India and South Africa share many common interests, including a commitment to non-violence. Both countries also had military cooperation in the late noughties and a shared love for cricket. MP Manish Tewari, during his visit, said, 'The parliamentary delegation visited Constitutional Hill, which used to be a jail where Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela were imprisoned for years and tortured after their arrest. We came here to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. The scenes at the jail and the descriptions given to us demonstrated that independence was attained with great difficulty and after torture to several generations. This is a living example that during apartheid in South Africa, people of Indian and African origin were treated barbarically, like animals."
Apart from Supriya Sule, the delegation includes former union ministers Anand Sharma, Manish Tewari, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Anurag Thakur, and V Muraleedharan. TDP's Lok Sabha MP Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu and former permanent representative of India to the UN, Syed Akbaruddin, are also part of the delegation. After visiting South Africa, the delegation will proceed to Ethiopia, with Egypt being its final destination before returning home early next week.
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May 31, 2025, 00:13 IST
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