Congress CMs skipping BRICS dinner shameful, says MP Bansuri Swaraj

New Delhi MP Bansuri Swaraj on Tuesday criticised three Congress Chief Ministers for not attending the BRICS Summit dinner, saying the event was a national platform and should not have been viewed through the lens of party politics.

“There can always be political and ideological differences in politics, but when it comes to India and matters of national interest, there should be no differences of heart or mind,” Swaraj said.

She said it was “deeply disappointing” that the Congress Chief Ministers, despite being invited to the dinner, had chosen to put party politics above the national interest.

Referring to Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Swaraj said media reports indicated that he had initially accepted the invitation and said he would attend the dinner, but later decided against it “apparently due to political compulsions”.

Questioning the Congress over the decision, Swaraj said, “In opposing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have you now started opposing Bharat Mata as well?”

She said BRICS Summit was neither a BJP platform nor a political event, but India’s platform and a matter of the country’s prestige and honour.

Swaraj said the absence of three Congress Chief Ministers when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was leading Team India before the international community was extremely disappointing and shameful.