NEW DELHI: CPI(M) MP John Brittas on Tuesday cited Parliament’s 2003 unanimous resolution under then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee condemning the Iraq war, urging the government to move a similar motion on the Iran conflict.
Speaking in the Rajya Sabha during Zero Hour, Brittas called for a “united and unanimous voice” of Parliament against what he described as unilateral and illegal wars by the United States and Israel on Iran, saying India should not remain silent.
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address in the Lok Sabha, he said key economic concerns and diaspora issues were raised, but there was no reference to the broader conflict, which he said required a clear position from India.
“What was missing was the silence on this unilateral, immoral, illegal war that has been unleashed by the United States and Israel,” he said.
Brittas noted that the Prime Minister had called for a unanimous and united voice from Parliament.
Addressing Chairman C P Radhakrishnan, who was a Lok Sabha member in 2003, he recalled that both Houses of Parliament had passed a joint unanimous resolution condemning the Iraq war under Vajpayee’s leadership.
“I wish that Indian Parliament, as the Prime Minister said, should express unanimously a united voice. Let the government bring a resolution which should be passed by both Houses,” he said.
Brittas said India had termed Iran’s attacks on Gulf countries as egregious, but questioned the origins of the crisis.
“I wish that the government does not go by the advice of Shashi Tharoor who said that silence is statecraft. I wish that they should be guided by the advice of Mallikarjun Kharge, not from Shashi Tharoor,” he said.
Kharge has repeatedly demanded a short-duration discussion on the Iran war and its impact on India.
Brittas said India, as a leader of the non-aligned nations, should ensure its voice is heard. “It is not only for the selfish interest of the nation but for the interest of larger humanity. So I call on the government to come with a resolution,” he added.
He also raised concerns about Indians affected by the crisis, including around 700 seafarers stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, and urged the government to facilitate communication with their families.
Brittas sought a rehabilitation package for Gulf returnees, highlighting the scale of remittances to Kerala, which he said receives nearly Rs 2.2 lakh crores about one-third of its gross domestic product.
Prime Minister Modi, in his Lok Sabha address, had spoken about the economic fallout of the Iran conflict, disruptions in supply chains, impact on daily life, concerns over LPG supply, and the condition of the Indian diaspora, but did not directly address the military strikes launched by the United States and Israel on Iran on February 28, which triggered a wider regional conflict.