Row over Chidambaram 'clean chit' to Pak, Congress leader slams 'misinformation'

A political storm erupted on Monday over senior Congress leader P Chidambaram's remarks suggesting that the terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack could have been 'homegrown', with the BJP accusing the Congress of giving a “clean chit to Pakistan” and playing into the hands of India's adversaries.

The controversy erupted just a day ahead of the Operation Sindoor debate in Parliament, after Chidambaram questioned the government's evidence linking Pakistan to the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam which killed 26 people, mostly civilians.

"Have they identified the terrorists? Where they came from? I mean, for all we know, they could be homegrown terrorists. Why do you assume that they came from Pakistan? There's no evidence of that," Chidambaram said in an interview with The Quint.

BJP HITS BACK

The BJP reacted sharply, accusing the Congress of undermining national security and echoing Pakistan’s narrative.

BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya posted on X, “Once again, the Congress rushes to give a clean chit to Pakistan, this time after the Pahalgam terror attack. Why is it that every time our forces confront Pakistan-sponsored terrorism, Congress leaders sound more like Islamabad's defence lawyers than India's opposition?"

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey went a step further, calling the Congress a "traitor organisation". "Rahul Gandhi signs MoUs with China’s Communist Party, they are tainted with corruption. They had decided to sell the nation away, but PM Modi came in between. Now they can’t digest strong leadership," Dubey said while speaking to news agency ANI.

Echoing similar sentiments, BJP MP Deepak Prakash accused the Congress of siding with 'traitors' and said the people of India "will never forgive" such leaders.

CONGRESS LEADERS BACK P CHIDAMBARAM

Several Congress MPs rallied behind Chidambaram, accusing the BJP of trying to deflect attention from its own failures in tackling terrorism.

Congress MP Manickam Tagore said, “The BJP wants to divert from the real issue—the Pahalgam terror attack and the failure of the Modi government to follow through with Operation Sindoor. This is a diversionary tactic. Congress stands with the Forces in the fight against terror.”

Senior Congress leader Pramod Tiwari questioned why the attackers remain unidentified even after three months. “We want to know where the terrorists are who killed the husbands of our 26 sisters. The government has failed till now. The dangerous game being played in Kashmir is not beneficial for the nation,” he said.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi also pushed back against Chidambaram’s remarks. “He is a former Home Minister and has served in many ministries. But we need no proof—Pakistan has been behind such attacks for decades. The TRF (The Resistance Front) initially claimed responsibility and then retracted. Pakistan even speaks for them at the UN. It is clear where the threat comes from,” she said.

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