Key Points

Addressing a press conference, Bhatia said, "We all know how India has grown stronger under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi. The Indian armed forces were given full freedom, and in Operation Sindoor, we saw how a strong message was sent."

"India's Leader of the Opposition has been on foreign soil for four days. And his only job is to defame India, which is progressing towards development," he added.

These remarks came after the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, met the Senate President of Colombia, Congress Overseas Chief Sam Pitroda, as shared on Saturday.

Meanwhile, his remarks have drawn sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The Congress leader, speaking earlier at an event at EIA University in Colombia, highlighted what he termed "structural flaws" in India's governance and argued that the country's diverse traditions must be allowed to thrive.

"India has strong capabilities in areas like engineering and healthcare, so I am very optimistic about the country. But at the same time, there are also flaws in the structure that India has to correct. The biggest challenge is the attack on democracy taking place in India," Gandhi said during his address.

Following his statement, the BJP has jumped into the mounting controversy, raising strong objections against the remarks made by Rahul Gandhi, labelling them as "anti-India" and "insulting" to the nation.

Moreover, Bhatia also said, "In the UPA government, P Chidambaram was the Home Minister, and yesterday, Manish Tewari, who was a former minister, made revelations. This revelation is worrying, it scares us that a government which was given the constitutional responsibility to protect the sovereignty of India, that government became a puppet in the hands of foreign powers."

These remarks came after P Chidambaram's recent statement about foreign pressure behind India's lack of retaliation against Pakistan after the 26/11 attacks.

Speaking on an ABP News Podcast, Chidambaram recounted the decision-making process within the government and how international diplomatic pressure, particularly from the United States, shaped India's stance.

Chidambaram recalled that he took charge as Home Minister on November 30, 2008, a day after the attacks and immediately following the resignation of Shivraj Patil.

"I became Home Minister the day after the attack. The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, called me to shift me from Finance to the Home Ministry. When I initially refused, I was told that Mrs. Gandhi (Sonia Gandhi), who was Congress president at the time, had already made a decision. I asked if I could speak with her, but was told she was out of town. I was instructed to take charge the next morning," Chidambaram said on the Inside Out podcast.

Later, P Chidambaram on Wednesday expressed frustration over being misquoted by the media regarding his comments on the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

Meanwhile, Congress leader and former Union minister Manish Tewari has said that former Union minister P Chidambaram's remarks about "US pressure" after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks "cannot be disregarded".

- ANI