Why does India require U.S. nod for securing its energy needs, ask Opposition leaders

In the wake of reports that the United States has “allowed” India to import Russian oil for a period of 30 days to help mitigate the spike in the price of oil, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Friday (March 6, 2026) asked why India should need another country’s approval to meet its own energy needs.

“When the United States decides to allow India to purchase Russian oil for just 30 days, it raises a fundamental question: why should India need another country’s approval to secure its own energy needs,” Mr. Stalin asked in a social media post.

Referring to the sinking of the Iranian naval vessel IRIS Dena by the U.S., soon after it participated in the International Fleet Review 2026 naval exercise hosted by India in Visakhapatnam, Mr. Stalin said this incident was “equally troubling”. “When a ship that came to India as part of a multinational exercise meets such a fate, India cannot appear silent or passive,” he added.

Mr. Stalin alleged that the BJP-led government at the Centre looked “totally compromised on India’s long-standing tradition of strategic autonomy and an independent foreign policy”. India’s dignity in the international arena needed to be protected and the nation’s sovereignty and interests needed to be defended, he added.

Citing U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s remarks on “allowing” India a temporary waiver to purchase Russian oil, several Opposition leaders accused the government of surrendering India’s “sovereignty” to the U.S.

Humiliating: CPI

CPI Rajya Sabha member P. Sandosh Kumar, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said that Mr. Bessent’s comments were “humiliating”. “Since when has the United States begun ‘allowing’ India to decide from whom we buy energy or with whom we conduct trade,” he asked.

Mr. Kumar demanded that the government should strongly register its protest on such remarks. “India is a proud and independent republic of 140 crore citizens, not a subordinate State expected to adjust its sovereign decisions according to the preferences of Washington,” he said.

CPI(M) Rajya Sabha leader John Brittas in a post on X said: “US ‘grants’ India a 30-day waiver to buy stranded Russian oil amid Middle East chaos? Is this ‘facilitation’ or pure humiliation for a sovereign nation like India? Time to break free from U.S. dictates on our energy choices.”

Where are our Ministers, asks RJD

Going a step further, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut demanded Mr. Modi’s resignation for “enslaving” India to U.S. interests.

RJD’s Rajya Sabha MP Manoj K. Jha questioned the government’s silence in the face of such remarks. “Where are our External Affairs Minister, our Petroleum Minister or our Prime Minister? We should have told the U.S. to mind their own business the very first time they put such an embargo on us,” the RJD leader said.