Why India didn't condemn Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's killing

Before becoming Iran’s Supreme Leader, Khamenei toured Karnataka to inaugurate a hospital and spoke in a Kashmir mosque in the early 1980s.

• Opposition questions PM Modi's silence on Khamenei's killing
• India urges peace, calls for dialogue and diplomacy in West Asia
• Oil ministry monitors supply amid Strait of Hormuz tensions

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As killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei escalates the ongoing conflict in West Asia, the opposition has questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janta Party-led (BJP) Union government for its silence on the assassination and accused the PM of abandoning traditional tenets of India's foreign policy.

The Centre's calibrated response mirrors New Delhi's conventional reaction to important global developments -- a mix of caution while aggressively  calling for restraint and de-escalation.

PM Modi today said that the situation in West Asia (Middle East) was a matter of grave concern. "India stands for peace and stability," he said while addressing a joint press briefing with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. "India has always called for dialogue and diplomacy to find a solution to such disputes," he said, underlining New Delhi's longstanding position on peaceful resolution of conflicts.

Khamenei's fraught ties with India

Khamenei's engagement with India wasn't ideal over the years, Reports quoting government sources say that the former Iranian Supreme leader interfered four times (from 2017-2014) prompting the MEA to summon Iranian envoys each time.

Khamenei’s public remarks on Kashmir in recent years drew strong diplomatic responses from New Delhi. The Ministry of External Affairs summoned Iranian envoys and reiterated that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, terming such comments interference in internal affairs. While these statements caused temporary diplomatic strain, they did not derail broader India Iran ties, which continued to be shaped by civilisational links, energy cooperation and strategic engagement.

In 2017, he rallied Muslims for "oppressed" Kashmiris, echoing Pakistan. Post-Article 370 revocation in 2019, he demanded a "just policy." During 2020 Delhi riots, he tweeted of a "massacre of Muslims" by "extremist Hindus," using #IndianMuslimsInDanger, ignoring Hindu victims and mirroring Pakistani narratives. Iran's parliament slammed the Citizenship Amendment Act as anti-Muslim. In September 2024, he equated India with Gaza and Myanmar in a tweet to 2.7 million followers, deemed "misinformed" by the MEA.

The Iranian embassy in India on Sunday urged governments around the world to strongly condemn the U.S.-Israel attack on Iran and the killing of its Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The Oil ministry on Monday said it is continuously monitoring the evolving situation and will take all necessary steps to ensure availability and affordability of key petroleum products in the country.

New Delhi imports 88 per cent of its crude oil needs and roughly half of its natural gas requirement. These mostly come via the Strait of Hormuz, which the Iranian authorities have threatened to shut down following attacks by the US and Israel.