The Congress on Thursday (February 26, 2026) described Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to the Israeli Parliament as an “unabashed defence of his host” premier Benjamin Netanyahu and one that “diminished India’s moral standing”.

Hitting out at Mr. Modi, the opposition party also recalled India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s July 1947 reply to Albert Einstein’s letter to him on the subject of the creation of Israel.

Addressing the Knesset on Wednesday (February 25, 2026), Mr. Modi described the Gaza Peace Initiative as a path towards “just and durable peace” in the region. He also delivered a message of solidarity with Israel, asserting that “terrorism anywhere threatens peace everywhere”.

“I 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 terrorism,” Mr. Modi said.

Congress general secretary, in-charge, communications, Jairam Ramesh, denounced the speech and dwelt at length on Nehru’s words.

“In 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 born,” he said in a post on X.

Mr. Ramesh then cited Einstein’s letter to Jawaharlal Nehru on June 13, 1947, on the subject of the creation of Israel.

“Here is Nehru’s reply to Einstein a month later. On November 5, 1949, the two had met at Einstein’s home in Princeton. In November 1952, Einstein was offered the Presidency of Israel which he declined,” Mr. Ramesh recalled.

“And a short while before he passed away in April 1955, Einstein and Nehru had exchanged letters on the issue of nuclear explosions and weapons,” he pointed out.

Mr. Ramesh posted that in his reply to Einstein on July 11, 1947, Nehru wrote, “I confess that while I have a very great deal of sympathy for the Jews, I feel sympathy for the Arabs also in their predicament. In any event, the whole issue has become one of high emotion and deep passion on both sides.” India’s first Prime Minister said, “Unless men are big enough on either side, which is just and generally agreeable to the parties concerned, I see no effective solution for the present.

“I have paid a good deal of attention to this problem of Palestine and have read books and pamphlets on the subject issued on either side; yet I cannot say that I know all about it, or that I am competent to pass a final opinion as to what should be done. I know that the Jews have done a wonderful piece of work in Palestine and have raised the standards of the people there, but one question troubles me. After all these remarkable achievements, why have they failed to gain the goodwill of the Arabs? Why do they want to compel the Arabs to submit against their will to certain demands, Nehru asked.

“The way of approach has been one which does not lead to a settlement, but rather to the continuation of the conflict. I have no doubt that the fault is not confined to one party but that all have erred,” he went on to say.

The chief difficulty has been the continuation of British rule in Palestine, Nehru said.

In another post, Mr. Ramesh cited the criticism of the PM’s address by Eitay Mack, a well-known Israeli lawyer and human rights activist.

“He [Mack] has exposed the sham of the Prime Minister’s much heralded [In the godi media] address to the Knesset yesterday that diminished India’s moral standing,” Mr. Ramesh said.

The Congress leader shared a post which carried Mr. Mack’s remarks in an article in which he was critical of Mr. Modi’s address.

Israel’s opposition has pleaded with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resolve the ongoing political crisis to ensure its participation during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to the Knesset.

Mr. Modi will undertake a two-day visit to Israel beginning Wednesday (February 25, 2026) to shore up bilateral defence and trade cooperation. 

Mr. Modi’s engagements will include his address to Israel’s parliament (Knesset), wide-ranging talks with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu and a meeting with President Isaac Herzog.

Israel’s opposition is demanding that the President of the Supreme Court of Israel, Yitzhak Amit, be invited for Mr. Modi’s address to the parliament, as per protocol, otherwise they will not attend the event. 

Speaker says Supreme Court President not invited

Speaker of the Knesset Ohana has made clear that Mr. Amit has not been invited to attend the speech.

“There are 24 hours left until Indian Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the Knesset, and the Prime Minister has yet to do anything to resolve the crisis created by (Speaker) Amir Ohana’s decision to boycott the Supreme Court and the opposition,” Leader of Opposition Yair Lapid posted on his X handle.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu, yesterday you said that this is an important moment for the country and that this is not the time for politics, but for standing together in the face of the challenges”, he wrote.

“Call Ohana, tell him to invite Supreme Court President (Yitzhak) Amit, allow us to come to the event that we need to be at and want to be at, and don’t lend your hand to harming one of the most important alliances of the State of Israel,” he pleaded.

“It is fitting that the world sees us all united during the visit to Israel of a great friend and ally,” Mr. Lapid asserted.

He has been making similar appeals for the past two days amid a standoff between the opposition and the government, as Mr. Modi’s visit has gotten entangled in a domestic political issue.

Earlier, on Monday, Mr. Ohana had said that he would fill vacant seats in the Knesset with former lawmakers.