PDP leader Tajamul Islam questions BRICS condemnation of Pahalgam attack, cites Palestine

Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], September 13 (ANI): Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader Syed Tajamul Islam on Sunday welcomed the BRICS Summit as a positive initiative but questioned the emphasis on the condemnation of the Pahalgam attack, saying India should also consider its response to the situation in Palestine.
Reacting to the New Delhi Declaration 2026 and BRICS countries' condemnation of the Pahalgam attack, Islam said the violence and loss of innocent lives in Palestine had also been severe and questioned why India had not condemned it.
“What happened in Palestine was also severe, yet India did not condemn it,” Islam said.
He referred to the deaths of innocent children in the conflict and said the situation in Palestine should also be taken into consideration.
“Innocent children were killed,” he said.
While describing the BRICS Summit as a good initiative, Islam cautioned against viewing the grouping and its outcomes only through the lens of the Pahalgam attack.
“BRICS Summit is a good initiative, but it cannot be viewed only through Pahalgam,” he said.
According to Islam, the broader context of India’s international relationships also needs to be examined when assessing the significance of the BRICS Summit and its declarations.
“We also need to look at India’s relations with other countries,” he said.
His remarks came after BRICS leaders condemned the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack in the New Delhi Declaration. 
The BRICS countries on Saturday adopted the New Delhi Declaration 2026, backing the aspirations of India and Brazil to play a greater role in the United Nations, including in the Security Council, while strongly condemning the April 2025 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam and calling for zero tolerance towards terrorism.
The declaration, adopted at the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, said China and Russia, as permanent members of the UN Security Council, reiterated their support for the aspirations of Brazil and India to play a greater role in the UN, including its Security Council.
The BRICS leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to reforming the UN Security Council to make it more democratic, representative, effective and efficient, with greater representation for developing countries.
On terrorism, the grouping condemned “in the strongest terms” the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22, 2025, in which 26 people were killed and several others injured.
The declaration reaffirmed BRICS’ commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, terrorism financing and safe havens. It also called for zero tolerance for terrorism and rejected double standards in countering the menace. (ANI)