US President Donald Trump has once again claimed credit for brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan. Reacting sharply, the Congress on Wednesday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that while Trump has repeated this claim 25 times over the past 73 days, the Indian prime minister remains “completely silent” — finding time only for foreign trips and for “undermining democratic institutions at home.”
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh hit out at the Centre for not providing a concrete date for a debate on the Pahalgam terror attack and the subsequent Operation Sindoor in Parliament.
“As the Modi government continues to evade giving a clear timeline for a discussion on Pahalgam-Sindoor, and refuses to commit to a response from the Prime Minister during the debate, President Trump, meanwhile, has reached his ‘silver jubilee’—repeating his claim 25 times in the last 73 days. While Trump keeps boasting, the Prime Minister of India remains conspicuously silent—making time only for foreign trips and for weakening democratic institutions at home,” Ramesh posted on X.
On Tuesday, former US President Donald Trump once again reiterated his claim of having “stopped a war between India and Pakistan,” crediting his intervention and threat to halt trade deals for defusing the situation.
“We have stopped wars between India and Pakistan. They were probably heading toward a nuclear conflict. Five planes were shot down during the last flare-up—it was going back and forth. I told them, ‘No more trade if this continues.’ They are both powerful nuclear nations. Who knows where it could have led, and I stopped it,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, opposition leaders in India have intensified demands for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address both Houses of Parliament and the nation on key national concerns—including the Pahalgam terror attack and the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise being conducted by the Election Commission in Bihar ahead of the upcoming assembly elections.
In yet another dramatic claim, former US President Donald Trump has asserted that the United States “completely took out” Iran’s nuclear capability and also brokered peace between Kosovo and Serbia. But it was his comments on South Asia that once again raised eyebrows.
Speaking at a White House dinner for Republican senators last Friday, Trump expanded on his often-repeated boast about halting a war between India and Pakistan — this time adding a new detail.
“You had India and Pakistan — that was going bad. Planes were being shot out of the air. Five — four or five — but I think it was five jets that were actually downed,” Trump said, describing the situation as dangerously escalating. “It was getting worse and worse. These are two serious nuclear powers and they were hitting each other.”
Trump credited his threat to cut off trade with both nations as the decisive move that brought the conflict to a halt. “That was going to go really badly. And I stopped it,” he added.
The remark marks the first time Trump has publicly mentioned the number of jets allegedly shot down — a detail not previously stated in his 25 earlier references to the India-Pakistan flare-up
Since May 10, when former US President Donald Trump announced via social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire — allegedly following a night of intense talks mediated by Washington — he has repeatedly claimed credit for defusing tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
However, India has firmly refuted any suggestion of third-party mediation. Officials have maintained that the understanding on cessation of hostilities was reached solely through direct talks between the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGsMO) of the Indian and Pakistani armies.
According to sources, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a 35-minute phone call with Trump last month, categorically reiterated India’s long-standing position that it does not and will never accept any external mediation on matters concerning its sovereignty. Modi also made it clear that the discussions on ending hostilities were initiated at Islamabad’s request.
The conflict escalated following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, which claimed the lives of 26 civilians. In response, India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
After four days of intense cross-border exchanges involving drone strikes and precision missile attacks, both sides arrived at an understanding to cease hostilities on May 10.
