White House condemns harassment of journalist who questioned PM Modi on minority rights
Washington: The White House said on Monday that it was “completely unacceptable” that Sabrina Siddiqui, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter was subjected to harassment and online abuse after she asked a question to Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding minority rights in India during a joint press event in the United States last week.
Biden administration officials pushed back strongly against this online trolling and harassment and asserted that they condemn any efforts of intimidation or harassment of a journalist while adding that they are committed to the freedom of press.
"It’s completely unacceptable and it's antithetical to the very principles of democracy that ... were on display last week during the state visit," said John Kirby, White House Spokesperson on National Security Issues.
The WSJ highlighted that Siddiqui was facing “intense online harassment from people inside India”. They also added that she was being targeted partly because of her Muslim faith.
During the joint press event, Siddiqui had raised concerns about religious minorities rights, including Muslims who are being blatantly discriminated under Modi’s government. She asked Modi about the steps being considered and taken to improve the rights of minorities in the country. Modi responded by stating that there is no discrimination in India as it runs on the principles on democracy.
The Wall Street Journal issued a statement and mentioned that Siddiqui is a respected journalist known for her integrity and unbiased reporting. South Asian Journalists Association (SAJA) also defended Siddiqui and expressed their support to her. Siddiqui, like many South Asian and female journalists, is experiencing harassment for simply doing her job, they added
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
