Congress urges Modi to restore India's Global South stature at BRICS

The Indian National Congress party has urged the Modi government to use India's chairmanship of the BRICS bloc to restore the country's diplomatic stature and rebuild trust among Global South partners. In a statement issued on Saturday, September 12, 2026, as the 18th BRICS Summit began, the opposition party criticized the ruling BJP government's foreign policy approach and called for concrete action. Salman Khurshid, the head of the Congress Foreign Affairs Department, said declarations of solidarity must be complemented by consistent and consequential action. He stated that the BJP government has had a limited diplomatic role during the ongoing war in West Asia and has been unwilling to forge consensus between BRICS members. The party specifically called for special measures to address concerns of perceived endorsement of attacks on BRICS member Iran. The Congress statement also criticized what it described as inadequate support for BRICS founding member South Africa when it faced diplomatic pressures.