‘This is a disgrace’: Congress slams PM Modi for ‘deafening’ silence over US ‘allowing’ Russian oil

New Delhi: Congress on Saturday launched scathing attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi The United States recently granted New Delhi a 30-day exemption for buying Russian oil. The attack quoted Donald Trump aide Scott Bessant, who said the United States had “allowed” India to accept oil from Moscow.The largest opposition party condemned and questioned the Modi government’s diplomacy on X, saying that a large country like India with a population of 1.4 billion is “waiting for Washington’s approval” and reiterated its accusation of “compromise” by its prime minister.

Congress quoted U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant as writing on the“India fought for freedom so that no foreign power could dictate to us. Yet today, led by a weak Prime Minister, the US is openly talking about giving India ‘permission’,” it added.The party lashed out at India’s diplomacy, calling the situation a “disgrace”. Congress called on the Prime Minister to explain, adding: “Indians are not actors in someone else’s script. Prime Minister Modi, your silence on this statement is deafening. The people of India deserve an explanation.”Previously, the United States said it had “allowed” India to purchase Russian oil on ships at sea to maintain global supplies during conflicts in the Middle East.“The world is very well supplied with oil. Yesterday, the U.S. Treasury Department agreed to let our Indian allies begin buying Russian oil that is already offshore,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant said in an interview with Fox Business Network on Friday.“The Indians have been very good actors. We asked them to stop buying sanctioned Russian oil this fall. They did. They intend to substitute it with American oil. But to ease the temporary shortfall of oil around the world, we allowed them to accept Russian oil. We may lift sanctions on other Russian oil,” he said.Bessant added that there are currently hundreds of millions of barrels of sanctioned crude on board. He said that by lifting sanctions on these goods, the U.S. Treasury Department can quickly increase supply to the market.“There are hundreds of millions of barrels of sanctioned crude on the water, and essentially, by lifting sanctions, the Treasury Department can create supply. We are looking at that. We will continue to announce measures to ease market pressure during this conflict,” he said.Several other Trump administration officials have also said the United States has now given India permission to buy Russian oil. A few months ago, President Donald Trump imposed punitive 25% tariffs on India over its oil purchases from Russia.U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright also addressed the move in an X post on Friday. He said the United States was “allowing our Indian friends” to take Russian oil already on ships around South Asia, refine it and quickly bring it to market to ensure a steady supply during the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran.“We have implemented short-term measures to help keep oil prices down. We are allowing our friends in India to take delivery of oil already on ships, refine it and then move that oil quickly to the market. This is a practical way to facilitate the flow of supply and relieve pressure,” Wright said.In a live interview with ABC News, Wright said that in the long term, global oil supplies are strong, but in the short term, more oil needs to be brought to the market quickly.