An all-party Indian parliamentary delegation led by JD(U) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha engaged with Indonesian scholars, researchers, and think tank representatives on Thursday, reaffirming India’s uncompromising stand against terrorism and calling for stronger regional cooperation to maintain peace and stability.
The delegation is in Indonesia as part of a broader diplomatic outreach following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam.
During the interactions, the delegation presented India’s “zero tolerance” policy on terrorism and urged the academic and policy community in Indonesia to support global efforts in identifying, isolating, and acting against terrorism and its enablers.
Addressing the gathering, Jha praised the Indonesian government and President Prabowo Subianto for their swift condemnation of the Pahalgam attack and their expression of solidarity with the Indian people. He stressed that India will not tolerate any form of “nuclear blackmail” and warned that those sheltering terrorists cannot hide behind the so-called nuclear umbrella.
“Any future terrorist incidents on Indian soil will be met with resolute and decisive military action,” he said. “India, along with other countries like Indonesia, has a zero tolerance for terrorism, and to implement this, India will not make any distinction hereafter between terrorists and countries that promote them.”
Jha said the delegation held productive meetings with the Vice Chairman of Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation, the Chairperson of the India-Indonesia Parliamentary Friendship Group, the Secretary General of ASEAN, and the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia. He noted that Indonesian officials offered unequivocal support for India’s anti-terror stance.
“We have been holding interactions and seeking support from Indonesia in locating terrorism, its backers, and financiers, sponsors at all crucial international forums and intergovernmental organisations. In the fight against terrorism, there is no neutral voice, every country needs to be together to fight terrorism,” Jha said.
“Every stakeholder, including think tanks and academia, has to play its role to counter extremist narrative and combat terrorism in all its forms. Today, we seek support from the think tank community and academia community in Indonesia who influence and enable policymakers to draft strategies for the future,” he added.
Speaking to IANS, Jha described the response from Indonesian counterparts as “very positive,” noting the country’s multicultural fabric and shared values with India.
“Indonesia is a multicultural society with a Muslim majority, yet there is great respect here for India’s stance,” said Jha
Other members of the delegation echoed Jha’s sentiments.
BJP MP Brij Lal said, “The engagement in Indonesia has been encouraging. We met ASEAN ambassadors, local leaders, and think tanks — all reaffirmed their belief that India is a peace-loving nation. As the world’s fourth-largest economy, India is focused on becoming a Viksit Bharat by 2047.”
Congress MP Salman Khurshid acknowledged concerns about regional narratives influenced by Pakistan but was heartened by Indonesia’s clear understanding. Before coming here, we were informed that we should observe how active Pakistan has been in this region and what narratives have been shared. But I am very pleased to see that Indonesia’s outlook is very positive. Their experiences and situations closely resemble those of our country. We received a very positive response from here. The people of Indonesia are also concerned about terrorism and have faced it themselves. They fully understand our concerns and challenges,” he said.
BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi described the visit as “very successful,” saying, “Everyone we interacted with – politicians, academics, and citizens – stood firmly against terrorism. There is a shared desire for peace and a strong recognition of India’s peaceful nature and resilience.”
She added that similar sentiments were expressed in previous stops, including Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. “All countries we visited have opposed terrorism and stood with India in these testing times.”
The all-party delegation also includes BJP MPs Hemang Joshi and Pradan Baruah, Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, CPI(M) MP John Barittas, and former Indian Ambassador to France, Mohan Kumar.
(With inputs from IANS)