Congress cites Nehru’s 1947 letter to attack Modi’s Knesset speech

The Congress on Thursday described Prime Minister PM Narendra Modirsquos address to the Israeli Parliament as an ldquounabashed defence of his hostrdquo Premier Benjamin Netanyahu and one that ldquodiminished Indiarsquos moral standingrdquo news agency PTI reportedHitting out at Modi the Opposition party also recalled Indiarsquos first PM Jawaharlal Nehrursquos July 1947 reply to Albert Einsteinrsquos letter to him on the subject of the creation of IsraelAddressing the Knesset on Wednesday Modi described the Gaza Peace Initiative as a path towards ldquojust and durable peacerdquo in the region He also delivered a message of solidarity with Israel asserting that ldquoterrorism anywhere threatens peace everywhererdquoldquoI also carry with me the deepest condolences of the people of India for every life lost and for every family whose world was shattered in the barbaric terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7 2023 India stands with Israel firmly with full conviction in this moment and beyond No cause can justify the murder of civilians Nothing can justify terrorismrdquo Modi saidCongress General Secretary Communications Jairam Ramesh denounced the speech and dwelt at length on Nehrursquos wordsldquoIn his address to the Knesset yesterday which was an unabashed defence of his host Prime Minister Modi drew attention to the fact that India recognised the new state of Israel on the day he was bornrdquo he said in a post on XRamesh then cited Einsteinrsquos letter to Nehru dated June 13 1947 on the subject of the creation of IsraelRamesh said Nehru had replied to Einstein a month later and also recalled that the two met at Einsteinrsquos home in Princeton on November 5 1949 He further noted that in November 1952 Einstein was offered the Presidency of Israel which he declined Shortly before his death in April 1955 the two leaders had also exchanged letters on nuclear explosions and weapons Ramesh pointed outReferring to Nehrursquos July 11 1947 reply Ramesh said Indiarsquos first Prime Minister had expressed sympathy for both Jews and Arabs observing that the issue had become deeply emotional and charged on both sidesNehru had argued that unless leaders on either side were largehearted enough to arrive at a solution that was just and broadly acceptable to all concerned there could be no effective resolution He had written that although he had studied the Palestine question in some detail he did not claim full knowledge or authority to pronounce a final solutionWhile acknowledging the remarkable work done by the Jews in Palestine and the progress achieved there Nehru had wondered why they had failed to secure the goodwill of the Arabs He questioned the wisdom of compelling the Arabs to accept certain demands against their willPM Modi Israel visit Ramesh invokes Nehrursquos Palestine view shares Israeli activistrsquos sharp critiqueAccording to Ramesh Nehru had cautioned that the prevailing approach would only prolong the conflict rather than resolve it adding that responsibility for the situation did not rest with one side alone as all parties had erred The chief difficulty had been the continuation of British rule in Palestine Nehru saidIn another post Ramesh cited criticism of the PMrsquos address by Eitay Mack a wellknown Israeli lawyer and human rights activistldquoHe Mack has exposed the sham of the Prime Ministerrsquos much heralded in the godi media address to the Knesset yesterday that diminished Indiarsquos moral standingrdquo Ramesh saidThe Congress leader shared a post carrying Mackrsquos remarks in an article in which he was critical of Modirsquos addressWith PTI inputs