Today, under Narendra Modi, India has abandoned that history and embraced Israel like never before. It is not just about buying weapons or sharing intelligence. It is an ideological, political, and economic embrace. The recent agreement signed in New Delhi by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich — one of the most extreme figures in Israel’s cabinet, and India’s Minister of Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman is not a minor event. It is a symbol of what India has become. The deal aims to boost trade and investment flows, but the timing is what matters: Israel is accused of war crimes in Gaza, and its leaders are under investigation at the International Criminal Court, yet India is rolling out the red carpet.
At the same time, India’s voting pattern at the UN tells its own story. After three years of abstaining on resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, suddenly New Delhi voted for a two-state solution. At first glance, this may look like balance, even moderation. But in reality, it is a calculated move: a fig leaf to cover India’s deepening complicity with Israel. The Modi government wants to keep its Western partners happy by appearing “reasonable” while cementing its partnership with Tel Aviv behind closed doors.
This hypocrisy must be called out. You cannot court Israel’s far-right ministers, expand military and corporate ties, and then pretend that a token vote for two states restores credibility. The children buried in Gaza do not care about the symbolism of UN votes. What matters is who fuels the war machine that kills them. And here, India’s record is clear: Israeli weapons tested on Palestinians are marketed and sold to India, and Indian money flows back to sustain Israel’s military industry. It is a deadly cycle of profit built on Palestinian blood.
Why this sudden closeness? Part of the answer is ideology. The Hindu nationalist movement that drives Modi’s politics admires Zionism. It sees in Israel a model: a majoritarian state built on the exclusion of a religious minority, justified through security fears, and sustained by global propaganda. For India’s ruling elite, the way Israel treats Palestinians looks less like a warning and more like an instruction manual. From Gaza to Kashmir, the tactics are familiar: blockades, surveillance, demographic engineering, curfews, and a legal system designed to deny dignity. Israel has done it longer, and India is a fast learner.
But ideology is only part of the story, the rest is business. Israel has become one of India’s top arms suppliers. Drones, missiles, border surveillance technology — much of it tested on Palestinians, are sold as “combat proven” and shipped straight to New Delhi. Every war in Gaza is a live advertisement for Israeli weapons, and India is the eager customer. When India signs economic agreements with Israeli ministers even in the middle of a brutal assault on Gaza, it is not an accident. It is an investment in a relationship where Palestinians are collateral damage.
And then there is the international angle. Modi’s India is desperate to be seen as a global power, aligned with Washington and its allies. Supporting Israel, or at least refusing to challenge it, has become a way to prove loyalty to the American camp. For a government obsessed with projecting strength, siding with Israel looks like a badge of honour. But in reality, it is a badge of shame.
The hypocrisy is staggering. India still claims the legacy of the Non-Aligned Movement. It still speaks of freedom, sovereignty, and dignity on global platforms. But when it comes to Palestine, it has abandoned every principle it once claimed to stand for. A country that fought colonial rule now finds itself defending a settler-colonial project. A country that once condemned apartheid now embraces a state accused of practicing apartheid against Palestinians.
This shift is not just about foreign policy. It tells us something about India itself. By siding with Israel, Modi is not only betraying Palestinians — he is preparing the ground for a more authoritarian and majoritarian India. Every lesson India learns from Israel will be applied at home: more surveillance, more militarisation, more justification for crushing dissent. Gaza is not far from Delhi. It is the mirror in which India’s future is being written.
The tragedy is that Palestinians have lost not only lives and land but also allies who once mattered. When India votes at the UN, it still carries weight. When India shifts its position, it is noticed. And when India turns its back on Palestine, it weakens the global struggle for justice. Modi’s symbolic vote for a two-state solution cannot erase the fact that India has chosen the side of occupation, not freedom.
The world must see this clearly. India is not a neutral player in Gaza. It is an enabler. It is a customer of Israeli weapons, a partner in Israeli trade, and a political ally that provides cover in international forums. And it does this while pretending to honor its anti-colonial past. This double game cannot go unchallenged.
Palestinians deserve better than empty statements and symbolic votes. They deserve real solidarity, the kind that challenges occupation and siege at their root. For India, that means breaking military and economic ties with Israel, not deepening them. It means returning to the principles it once claimed to uphold. Until then, India cannot speak of justice abroad while practicing injustice at home and rewarding it abroad.
History will remember this moment. Just as South Africa’s apartheid regime was brought down not only by internal resistance but by global isolation, so too will Israel one day be judged. And when that judgment comes, India will have to answer why it stood not with the oppressed but with the oppressor.
India’s rulers may believe that siding with Israel makes them strong. In truth, it exposes their weakness: the fear of standing up to power, the abandonment of principle, and the willingness to trade moral authority for short-term gains. The people of Gaza, bombed and starved, are not fooled by India’s UN votes or trade deals. They see clearly who profits from their suffering. And so should the world.
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