Even as New Delhi gets ready to host the high-profile BRICS summit over the weekend, senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP P Chidambaram on Wednesday questioned the tangible benefits India has gained from recent BRICS summits. The former Union minister said he had not seen any significant outcomes from the last two or three meetings.
Speaking about the upcoming BRICS Summit 2026 in Delhi, Chidambaram said India is part of several multilateral groupings, including BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), G20 and QUAD, but questioned what concrete benefits the country has received from them.
"I don't know how many Presidents and how many Prime Ministers are coming. I don't think the last two or three BRICS summits have resulted in tangible benefits or tangible results," Chidambaram told news agency ANI.
"In fact, we are part of BRICS, we are part of SCO, we are part of G20, and we are part of QUAD. What benefits are we getting out of that? I can't see. In the last two or three summits, I didn't see any benefits. Earlier, the BRICS Summits resulted in some tangible benefits," he added.
Hitting back at the Congress leader, the BJP raised question on Congress' understanding of diplomacy.
"This raises question on how Congress views diplomacy. The Congress during its tenure called Pakistan a victim of terror while it is a perpetrator of terrorism," senior BJP leader Nalin Kohli said.
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"Does Congress see diplomacy purely in terms of give and take that it is asking about tangible benefits," he further asked.
He also accused the Congress of trying to play politics over a big and important event.
Chidambaram's remarks came as preparations are underway in the national capital for the BRICS Summit 2026, with civic and infrastructure agencies stepping up arrangements ahead of the gathering.
India will host the BRICS summit in New Delhi on September 12-13, 2026.
The country assumed the BRICS Chairship on January 1, 2026, under the theme 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability'.
BRICS brings together eleven major emerging and developing economies - Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, India, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates.
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Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam participate as the BRICS Partner Countries.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Russian President Vladimir Putin, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto are among the top leaders expected to attend the crucial meeting.
Collectively, BRICS represents around 49 per cent of the world's population, and about 40 per cent of global GDP.
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