Shashi Tharoor Backs PM Modi Over Sailor Deaths Issue; BJP Says Rahul Gandhi's Narrative 'Busted'

Last Updated:June 19, 2026, 21:23 IST

Shashi Tharoor says Narendra Modi raised Indian sailors deaths with Donald Trump at G7, praises stance but says it could be stronger, BJP says he busted Rahul Gandhis narrative

Congress MP Dr. Shashi Tharoor said on Friday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised the issue of Indian sailors’ deaths in his bilateral meeting with US President Donald Trump at Evian, France, and that he did so both at the G7 level and in the private meeting.

The BJP seized on the interview almost immediately, saying Tharoor had “busted" a narrative Rahul Gandhi had been pushing on the same issue.

Tharoor, who chairs Parliament’s Standing Committee on External Affairs, told CNN-News18 in an exclusive interview that in his personal and individual capacity, he felt the Prime Minister’s public statement at the G7 meeting on the importance of protecting seafarers, which he said Modi reiterated privately with Trump, “was well taken."

He added that the Congress party was entitled to argue the case “could have been expressed even more strongly," but said there was no disagreement on the principle that civilian sailors in a war zone must not become casualties of combat.

“No one disagrees that civilian sailors caught up in a war zone should not be victims of combat attacks," Tharoor said. “That’s a principle we would all agree with."

The BJP Response

The BJP issued a sharp response after the CNN-News18 interview aired. A party spokesperson said Tharoor had “busted the fake narrative of Rahul Gandhi," who had claimed that the Modi government had surrendered in its meeting with Trump.

The party also drew a parallel with Operation Sindhu, saying Tharoor had similarly rejected Gandhi’s framing at that time as well. The spokesperson took aim at Gandhi directly, saying: “At least on your birthday, when your own MPs expose you, you must take it with humility and introspect."

On the broader tone of the Modi-Trump bilateral, Tharoor said he read Trump’s body language and words as a deliberate signal that Washington views the India-US and Pakistan-US relationships as entirely separate. He said American interlocutors had been conveying to Indian officials that they never intended to downplay the relationship with India, and that the recent warmth was an attempt to correct a perception built up over several months.

“From fairly major things like the 50 percent tariffs to more symbolic things like the changing of the Indo-Pacific Command back to the Pacific Command," Tharoor said, “these are all different kinds of signals that have kept Indian policymakers understandably concerned."

The Quad Summit

On the Quad, Tharoor said the onus was now on the United States to act. He said India has been waiting to host a Quad summit since November 2025, when the chairmanship passed from America to India, but Trump has not been able to commit to a date.

He said India should not relinquish the chairmanship without hosting the summit, and that the US “will simply have to find the time."

Tharoor also pushed for a Trump visit to India, whether as part of the Quad summit, a separate bilateral, or potentially a Republic Day visit in 2026. “Language, especially with a loquacious president, is not a terribly expensive thing," he said. “Actions are of great value for us. We now have to move from language to actions."

On Trump saying he would defend India if it were attacked “as long as Narendra Modi is the prime minister," Tharoor was measured. He noted Trump has two and a half years left in his term, and said pledges tied to individual leaders have limited shelf life. “Relations are between countries," he said. “Bonhomie between individual leaders is no substitute for serious national engagement in policy."

The Modi-Trump meeting took place on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Evian, France.

About the Author

Anoshito Banerjee

Anoshito Banerjee is a digital journalist at CNN-News18, specialising in Indian foreign policy, global diplomacy, South and West Asian geopolitics, and strategic affairs. His reporting spans hard news...Read More

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