Bipartisan outreach will help India's case against Pakistan

Hans India

19-05-2025

The government's decision to include Opposition leaders in the seven delegations being sent to countries across the globe is significant and sagacious. This step underscores a refreshing and much-needed bipartisan approach to foreign policy, national security, and global image management. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, an articulate debater and former diplomat, will lead the most important delegation to the United States, Panama, Guyana, Brazil, and Colombia. This initiative could reshape how the world views India's internal cohesion and foreign policy maturity. It should be mentioned that this is not the first time that such a bipartisan initiative has taken place. In 1994, the then prime minister P V Narasimha Rao asked the leader of opposition Atal Bihari Vajpayee to head a delegation to the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) in Geneva to counter Pakistan. After the Mumbai attacks in November 2008, Manmohan Singh sent multi-party delegations to different continents with evidence on Pakistan's links to the terror attacks. Such inclusive diplomatic initiatives send a powerful message to both friends and foes alike that the country's political class stands united when it comes to matters of national defence and security.
Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the egregious Pahalgam terror attack, has become a rallying point for all political parties. Indian leaders have shown that they don't allow partisan politics to ignore national interests. It tells the world that Indian democracy, though noisy and diverse, knows when to close ranks to protect its integrity. Also, these delegations will help counteract the wave of anti-India propaganda that has been gaining ground globally. Pakistan, along with several interest groups in the West, has often painted India in negative hues, while accusing the country of religious intolerance, human rights violations and authoritarianism. These narratives, whether promoted through social media, academic forums, or political lobbying, have the potential to considerably damage India's diplomatic and economic interests. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government have frequently been targeted in such campaigns, often being portrayed as anti-Muslim or Rightwing extremists. When leaders from the Opposition, many of whom are vocal critics of the Modi administration, join the government in representing India abroad, it helps debunk such accusations. A united political voice cuts through propaganda and presents a more nuanced, authentic picture of the Indian state and society.
This bipartisan outreach can also have a positive effect on domestic political culture. Indian politics has, of late, become increasingly confrontational and polarised, with debates degenerating into personal attacks and ideological rigidity. The act of working together as a cohesive unit on sensitive and strategic matters can help build mutual respect and encourage more constructive political engagement at home. When leaders from different political ideologies cooperate on international platforms, it sends a signal that political rivalry need not be equated to enmity. This could, in turn, tone down the toxicity in Indian politics and create space for more mature and issue-based discourse. The government's move to send mixed delegations composed of both ruling party and Opposition leaders is a commendable and visionary step. It aligns diplomatic engagement with democratic values, leverages the country's political diversity, and sends a powerful message of unity and resolve to the global community. If this collaborative spirit is nurtured, it could lay the foundation for a more balanced, credible, and effective Indian foreign policy—one that represents the entire nation and its people, and not just the ruling government.