Rahul Gandhi accuses PM Modi of surrendering strategic autonomy after torpedo attack on IRIS Dena
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Rahul Gandhi accuses PM Modi of surrendering strategic autonomy after torpedo attack on IRIS Dena")
Indian National Congress (INC) party leader Rahul Gandhi gestures during a press conference at the party headquarters in New Delhi on August 7, 2025, ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in India's Bihar state. Photograph: (AFP)
Rahul Gandhi criticised PM Narendra Modi for remaining silent after the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena was sunk near Sri Lanka during escalating US-Iran tensions.
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi targeted PM Modi again on March 5, calling out his “silence” after a US submarine sunk IRIS Dena. In a social media post, Rahul Gandhi accused the Prime Minister of “surrendering India's strategic autonomy”. He said that India needs a steady hand at the wheel as the country has troubled times ahead.
"The conflict has reached our backyard, with an Iranian warship sunk in the Indian Ocean. Yet the Prime Minister has said nothing. At a moment like this, we need a steady hand at the wheel. Instead, India has a compromised PM who has surrendered our strategic autonomy," wrote Rahul Gandhi. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said the response of India was "shocking," that the Indian government had never looked so "timid and fearful". Pawan Khera said that the Prime Minister lacked courage.
The response from the Indian authorities has been muted; it didn't condemn the killing of children in the Minab school bombing, and the government has remained largely silent on the killing of Ali Khamenei. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met Iranian Ambassador Dr Mohammed Fathali and signed the condolence book. In;dia denied having shared any intelligence or "baseless and fabricated" claims that Indian ports were used by the US Navy to stage attacks on IRIS Dena.
The Iranian frigate was struck around 40 nautical miles off Sri Lanka. The attack resulted in the death of 87 Iranian sailors, while 32 others were rescued by the Sri Lankan Military. IRIS Dena was transiting from India's territorial waters after participating in the International Fleet Review 2026 (IFR) and MILAN 2026 in Visakhapatnam. Former Indian Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal said that usually, these exercise ships cannot carry any ammunition as per the protocols, it didn't have any defence capability. The US was also invited to the exercise, but it withdrew from participation at the last minute. The IRIS Dena was “a guest of India's Navy”; the US has ignored India's sensitivities.
