New Delhi: A political row has erupted ahead of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi after Congress MP P Chidambaram questioned the tangible benefits India has gained from the grouping, drawing a sharp response from the BJP.
India, which assumed the BRICS chair for 2026 on January 1, will host the 18th summit at Bharat Mandapam from Friday evening to Sunday.
The summit, marking 20 years of BRICS, will focus on “Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability” and is expected to discuss global challenges, including the economic impact of the West Asia crisis.
Chidambaram said India is part of BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, G20 and QUAD, but claimed the last two or three BRICS summits had produced few tangible results. “What benefits are we getting out of that? I can’t see,” he told ANI, while noting that earlier BRICS meetings had delivered concrete outcomes.
BJP leader Nalin Kohli accused Congress of viewing diplomacy as a transaction and questioned its criticism of the summit. He said the event would provide opportunities for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hold direct and one-on-one meetings with world leaders.
BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari said Congress was acting out of “Fear Of Missing Out” and compared its response to a “naaraz fufa”. He alleged the party opposes initiatives that enhance India’s global standing.
India has previously chaired BRICS in 2012, 2016 and 2021.
