'Doubts His Own Mental Capacity': Sudhanshu, Nalin Kohli Hit Back at Chidambaram Over BRICS Remark

Chidambaram Questions India's Gains From BRICS

Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram has questioned the concrete benefits India has received from its participation in BRICS and other multilateral groupings.

Ahead of the 2026 BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Chidambaram said he had not seen significant commercial or strategic benefits for India from the last two or three BRICS meetings. His remarks triggered a political confrontation with the BJP.

Chidambaram's comments came at a time when India is hosting the 18th BRICS Summit, placing the grouping at the centre of international diplomatic attention.

BJP Hits Back at Congress Leader

The BJP strongly criticised Chidambaram's assessment of BRICS.

BJP leaders, including Sudhanshu Mittal and Nalin Kohli, challenged his criticism and argued that India has gained greater international visibility and strategic influence through its participation in the grouping.

The BJP's response focused on what it described as the growing economic and geopolitical importance of BRICS and India's role within the expanded bloc.

'Doubts His Own Mental Capacity': Sudhanshu's Attack

Sudhanshu Mittal launched a personal attack on Chidambaram over his assessment of BRICS, questioning the former Union minister's understanding of India's growing international influence.

The sharp response reflects the increasingly political nature of the debate over India's foreign policy, with the BJP seeking to portray Congress criticism of BRICS as inconsistent with India's expanding role in global affairs.

Nalin Kohli Questions Congress's Position

BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli also criticised Chidambaram's remarks.

Kohli argued that BRICS should not be evaluated only by immediate commercial gains. According to the BJP's position, India's participation in major multilateral platforms also provides diplomatic access, strategic partnerships and an opportunity to influence discussions on global economic governance.

His response came amid a broader BJP effort to highlight India's role as host of the 2026 BRICS Summit.

Congress Leaders Take Different Positions on BRICS

The controversy has also exposed differences within the Congress over the significance of BRICS.

While Chidambaram questioned the tangible outcomes of recent summits, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has spoken positively about the importance of BRICS and India's hosting of the 2026 summit.

Tharoor has highlighted the grouping's importance for the Global South and argued that bringing together 11 major countries gives BRICS considerable diplomatic significance.

The contrasting statements have allowed the BJP to accuse Congress of lacking a consistent position on India's foreign policy.

BRICS' Growing Global Significance

BRICS has expanded considerably from its original grouping of Brazil, Russia, India and China.

The expanded bloc now includes 11 full members, including South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The group represents nearly half of the world's population and around 40% of the global economy in purchasing-power terms.

Its agenda has increasingly moved beyond trade to issues such as development finance, payment systems, global governance and cooperation among emerging economies.

India's BRICS Agenda

India is using its 2026 BRICS chairmanship to push for practical cooperation in areas including economic resilience, innovation, sustainability and digital connectivity.

One major issue under discussion is improving cross-border payments. India has been advocating greater interoperability between the digital currencies of BRICS countries, although significant technical and geopolitical challenges remain.

BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors have also called for reforms to global development financial institutions such as the IMF and World Bank.

Debate Over Tangible Benefits

The central issue raised by Chidambaram is whether India's participation in multilateral groupings translates into measurable economic and strategic benefits.

The BJP's response is that the value of BRICS cannot be assessed only through immediate trade figures. Diplomatic influence, access to emerging markets, development financing and the ability to shape discussions on global financial architecture are also important outcomes.

The disagreement therefore reflects two different approaches to evaluating India's engagement with international organisations.

BRICS Summit Comes Amid Global Tensions

The debate is taking place against a complicated geopolitical backdrop.

The expanded BRICS grouping includes countries with significantly different foreign-policy priorities and relationships with the United States and other Western powers. Conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, trade tensions and discussions around de-dollarisation have added further complexity to the bloc's agenda.

India has sought to maintain a pragmatic approach, balancing its engagement with BRICS alongside relationships with Western countries and other major global partners.

Conclusion

The exchange between P. Chidambaram and BJP leaders over BRICS has triggered a fresh political debate about the value of India's participation in multilateral organisations.

While Chidambaram has questioned the tangible gains from recent BRICS summits, the BJP has defended India's engagement and highlighted the bloc's growing economic and geopolitical importance. The contrasting positions within Congress itself, particularly between Chidambaram and Shashi Tharoor, have added another dimension to the debate.

As India hosts the 18th BRICS Summit, the focus is likely to remain on whether the grouping can translate its growing global influence into concrete outcomes in trade, finance, development and international cooperation.