'Why hesitancy now?': Congress reiterates 'compromised PM' charge over silence on Ayatollah Khamenei's death

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Friday took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, questioning his hesitation in condemning the death of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.Recalling his earlier charge of “compromised PM”, Ramesh claimed that PM Modi wanted to “avoid antagonising his American and Israeli friends”, referring to US President Donald Trump and Tel Aviv’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a post on X, he wrote: “Why the hesitancy now? A compromised PM no doubt wants to avoid antagonizing his American and Israeli ‘friend.’”The Congress leader also questioned the silence of PM Modi and the external affairs ministry following the death of Ayatollah Khamenei. “Ayatollah Khamenei, the constitutional head of state in Iran, was assassinated on Feb 28, 2026 by the US and Israel. The PM is silent. The EAM is silent. Parliament is yet to have an obituary reference,” he wrote.His remarks came after India backed a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution condemning Iran’s attacks on Middle Eastern nations.“India has rightly condemned Iran’s attacks on Gulf states but is completely quiet on the US-Israeli assault on Iran in the first place. It should be remembered that Iran is a part of the BRICS+ forum, which India holds the presidency of this year,” he further wrote.Recalling the death of former Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in 2024, Ramesh said that the government had earlier declared a one-day state mourning and is hesitating now. “In May 2024, the President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, was killed in a mysterious helicopter crash. The Modi government ordered a one-day mourning on May 21, 2024, and Parliament had an obituary reference on July 1, 2024 when it convened,” he wrote.Khamenei was killed earlier this month in a coordinated strike carried out by Israel and the United States. He was later succeeded by his second-oldest son, Mojtaba Khamenei.