Issuing a pointed warning about India's energy security, Congress leader and leader of opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Thursday told the Lok Sabha that India faces a deepening energy security crisis rooted in what he called flawed foreign policy decisions. He alleged that the government had bartered away India's right to determine its own oil supplier relationships as the Strait of Hormuz entered its 13th consecutive day of closure to commercial shipping. His remarks set the tone for a charged parliamentary debate on the West Asia crisis before Hardeep Singh Puri, Union minister for petroleum and natural gas, rose to offer the government's defence.
Mr Gandhi sought permission to make a statement in the Lok Sabha on the liquified petroleum gas (LPG) and gas situation but said he was not allowed to speak on his own terms. "Normally, there is a procedure that you can ask to talk. I had asked to be allowed to make a statement regarding the gas and LPG situation. But a new procedure seems to have started — first the minister will decide, then I will speak, and after that the minister will respond," he told reporters outside Parliament, signalling his frustration with what he saw as the government controlling the terms of debate on a national crisis.
'Gas, Petrol, All Fuel Will Be a Problem'
The LoPs' warning was unambiguous and deliberately stripped of political language. "Basically, the main thing is that the gas is going to be a problem. The petrol is going to be a problem. All fuel is going to be a problem. Because essentially, our energy security has been compromised," he says.
He urged prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi and the government to begin serious preparation immediately. "If not, then it will impact crores of people," he warned.
Inside the Lok Sabha, Mr Gandhi raised the issue of the Strait of Hormuz. the narrow waterway through which 20% of global crude oil, natural gas, and LPG flows, which has been effectively closed to commercial shipping for 13 days following the US-Israel military operation against Iran.
"The central artery from where 20% of global oil flows has been closed and this is going to have tremendous repercussions, particularly for us, because a very large portion of our oil and natural gas comes through the Strait of Hormuz," he said.
The Foreign Policy Allegation
The sharpest edge of Mr Gandhi's remarks was directed not at the immediate crisis but at what he alleged was its underlying cause. He accused the government of having 'bartered' India's right to determine its own relationships with different oil suppliers to the US, a pointed reference to what he characterised as a foreign policy compromise that had left India strategically exposed at precisely the moment global energy markets descended into crisis.
The LOP framed energy security as the bedrock of national sovereignty. "The foundation of every single nation is its energy security," he says, arguing that the government's foreign policy decisions had eroded that foundation by constraining India's ability to independently manage its supplier relationships.
'This Is Bigger Than Iran'
What distinguished Mr Gandhi's intervention from routine opposition criticism was his insistence that the crisis was structural rather than situational. He explicitly cautioned against viewing the problem as one that would resolve itself once the Iran conflict ended. "It is a much bigger issue whether Iran will allow fuel or not. We are going into an unstable time," he says.
"This war is fundamentally about the current world order," the Congress leader argued, suggesting that the geopolitical shifts reshaping global trade and energy flows would outlast any individual conflict. "When you go into an unstable time, you have to change your mindset. What I am suggesting to the government is that they think about what the possibilities are and ensure that our people don't suffer."
He was emphatic that even a resolution of the Iran situation would not solve the deeper problem. "If it can be resolved at the level of Iran, then also this problem will not be solved because the world is changing and the structure is changing. So we have to change the mindset. But if we do not change the mindset, if we will not work with clarity, if we don't make India the centre, then it will be a problem," he added.
Not Politics, He Says — But Action
Mr Gandhi was careful to frame his remarks as a national warning rather than partisan attack, an unusual register for an opposition leader. "I am not making any political statement. I can see a big problem coming," he says, adding that the urgency of the situation demanded a response that transcended political calculation.
His remarks were accompanied by Congress protests across the country against the recent LPG price hike — Rs60 on domestic cylinders and Rs115 on commercial ones.
The Maharashtra pradesh Congress committee announced statewide demonstrations, and members of Karnataka's district Congress committee staged protests in Mandya, condemning what the party called the government's failure to plan adequately for the fuel and gas supply crisis.
Govt Assures Supply
Petroleum minister Puri subsequently made a detailed statement in the Lok Sabha outlining the government's response, including a 28% rise in LPG production in five days, crude supply diversification to 70% non-Hormuz sources, and the allocation of 20% of monthly commercial LPG requirements to the hospitality sector. He asserted that India's energy position is secure and consumer prices are being held well below market levels.
"Non-Hormuz sourcing has risen to approximately 70% of crude imports, up from 55% before the conflict began. India sources crude from 40 countries, against 27 in FY06-07; this structural diversification, built through sustained policy over successive years, has given us options that other nations now find themselves without. Refineries are operating at high capacity utilisation; in several cases, they are exceeding 100%," the minister says.
According to Mr Puri, alternative fuel options are being activated to ease pressure on LPG and gas channels. He says, "Kerosene is being made available through retail outlets and public distribution system (PDS) channels, and fuel oil is being made available for industrial and commercial consumers. The Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) has advised state pollution control boards to permit, for the duration of this crisis period, the use of biomass, refuse-derived fuel (RDF) pellets, and kerosene and coal as alternate fuels for the hospitality and restaurant segment for one month, which would enable a wider range of establishments to switch and free up LPG for priority consumers."
