New Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah came under fire from opposition parties Tuesday over the blast near Delhi’s Red Fort, as they called him “incompetent” and a “failure” in handling the country’s internal security, dropping the initial restraint they had shown in responding to the incident.
Opposition leaders alleged that the government’s “obsession with propaganda and optics” has distracted it from governance and security, leading to repeated incidents and loss of lives.
The Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for proceeding with his official trip to Bhutan within a day of the blast, which has claimed 12 lives so far. Speaking at an event there, Modi said those involved in the “conspiracy” would be brought to justice.
Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said Shah had “failed” as home minister, citing the terror attack in Pahalgam earlier this year, followed by Monday’s explosion in the capital.
“Whose responsibility is it? Where is the Home Minister? Where is the Prime Minister? Indians are being brutally murdered right under their noses, but neither of them has a moment to spare from their electioneering rhetoric, there is no accountability,” Shrinate said in a video statement.
Shrinate, who heads the Congress’s social media and digital platforms, said Modi and Shah’s “failures and repeated serious lapses in security cannot be hidden by grand speeches”.
“Modi ji, as always after such a major incident, has turned his face away from responsibility and headed off to Bhutan. And before the cockroaches lecture me about not doing politics—keep in mind that keeping this country safe, protecting its people, is the government’s responsibility. And if innocent lives are lost, questions will be raised, accountability will be fixed,” she stated.
Karnataka cabinet minister Priyank Kharge too took aim at Shah, saying the home minister had “failed Kashmir, Manipur, Delhi, Pulwama, Pahalgam, UP, and the country”.
राष्ट्र की राजधानी दिल्ली में बम धमाके में 13 लोग मारे गए
कल ही फरीदाबाद में 360 किलो विस्फोटक पकड़ा गया
वो वहाँ तक आया कैसे, कितनी बड़ी अनहोनी हो सकती थी
अभी मुश्किल से 7 महीने पहले पहलगाम में नृशंस आतंकी हमला हुआ था
अब दिल्ली में यह हुआ है – किसकी ज़िम्मेदारी है?
कहाँ… pic.twitter.com/GHkt7pvvGC
— Supriya Shrinate (@SupriyaShrinate) November 11, 2025
Leaders of the TMC, the third largest opposition party in the Lok Sabha after the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, flayed Shah, listing terror attacks in the country since 2015—from Gurdaspur in Punjab to Delhi.
TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee noted that the Delhi Police reports to the Union Home Ministry and questioned what he described as “grave lapses” in the capital’s security.
“Only yesterday morning, nearly 350 kg of explosives and an assault rifle were recovered from Faridabad in Haryana. Viewed together, these incidents raise alarming questions about internal security and the evident decline in vigilance,” Banerjee posted on X.
I am deeply shocked and anguished to learn of the tragic explosion near Delhi’s Red Fort, which has reportedly claimed several lives and left many others injured. My heartfelt condolences go out to the bereaved families and my prayers are with those recovering from their…
— Abhishek Banerjee (@abhishekaitc) November 11, 2025
In a statement sharply critical of the government, the TMC said the repeated pattern of institutional vulnerability and security failure cannot be ignored any longer, adding that the nation “deserves leadership, not excuses”.
On X, the party’s Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra hit out at Shah, saying, “India needs a capable Home Minister not a full time Hate Campaign Minister. Isn’t it Amit Shah‘s duty to protect both our borders as well as our cities? Why is he failing so spectacularly on all counts?”
India needs a capable Home Minster not a full time Hate Campaign Minister. Isn’t it @AmitShah ‘s duty to protect both our borders as well as our cities? Why is he failing so spectacularly on all counts?
— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) November 11, 2025
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh also targeted the PM, taking a swipe at him over US President Donald Trump’s assertions that he brokered a truce between India and Pakistan during Operation Sindoor in the aftermath of the terror attack on tourists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam in April this year.
“Modi ji, you had said, ‘Every terrorist attack will be considered a war’. Why did you agree to a ceasefire under Trump’s pressure by trusting Pakistan? The terrorist involved in the Red Fort blast is connected to the Pakistani terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed. Now, will you complain to Trump like a child, or will you give a befitting reply to Pakistan?” Singh posted on X.
आग लगे बस्ती में मोदी अपनी मस्ती में।
देश “Pain” में मोदी “Plane” में।
देश की राजधानी पर आतंकी हमला हुआ।प्रधानमंत्री जन्म दिन मनाने निकल पड़े।
गृह मंत्री बिहार चुनाव में व्यस्त हैं।
देश कब तक ऐसे संवेदनहीन प्रधानमंत्री और गृह मंत्री को बर्दाश्त करेगा? pic.twitter.com/4OLPAmKOjv— Sanjay Singh AAP (@SanjayAzadSln) November 11, 2025
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, addressing Indian Army soldiers at Srinagar’s Badami Bagh Cantonment on 15 May, had said that Modi “redefined India’s policy against terrorism”, which now holds that any attack on Indian soil “will be considered an act of war”.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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