Photo: Siasat
New Delhi: The CPI(M) on Wednesday criticised the Telangana government’s decision to name a road near the US Consulate in Hyderabad after US President Donald Trump, joining the BJP in raising objections over the move.
CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby said he hoped the Congress leadership would intervene and ensure that the decision was withdrawn.
In a post on X, Baby compared the move with the renaming of Harrington Street near the US Consulate in Kolkata as Ho Chi Minh Sarani during the Vietnam War. He said that the decision had honoured Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh during a period of opposition to US military actions, Siasat Daily reported.
Targeting the Telangana government, Baby alleged that naming a road after Trump at a time when the US was involved in a war against Iran, the Gaza genocide, military intervention in Venezuela and geopolitical disputes reflected a disregard for India’s anti-imperialist traditions.
He also criticised the central government over its response to the recent killing of three Indian sailors in a US military strike on a commercial vessel. Baby alleged that the government had failed to strongly protest the incident and accused it of compromising national interests.
The CPI(M) leader claimed that both the BJP and Congress governments had shown a lack of concern for India’s sovereignty and urged the Congress high command to act against the Telangana government’s decision. He said that support for anti-imperialist values should be reflected through actions and not merely statements.
The Telangana government had recently announced that a road adjoining the US Consulate in Hyderabad would be named “Donald Trump Avenue”. Officials said the road was expected to be inaugurated on June 23.
Earlier, Telangana BJP president N Ramchander Rao also criticised the move, accusing the Congress of double standards. He questioned why Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who had previously criticised the BJP over its foreign policy positions, had not responded to the Telangana government’s decision.
Rao alleged that naming the road after Trump reflected a “subservient mindset” towards foreign powers and accused Congress of hypocrisy over its stance on international relations.