The Communist Party of India (CPI) on Friday criticised the all-party meeting convened by the Central government on Thursday in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, calling it a “lost opportunity to build national unity” which, instead of fostering consensus, turned into “a public relations exercise.”

The CPI also took strong exception to Prime Minister Narendra Modi not attending the meeting.

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In a statement issued by the CPI Parliamentary Party, its Rajya Sabha leader P Sandosh Kumar said, “The Prime Minister, as head of the government, should have attended, shared his views, and genuinely listened to others. Instead, he chose to speak at a political rally in Bihar.”

The party raised concerns over “security and intelligence lapses surrounding the Pahalgam attack.”

Referring to reports that “at least two of the terrorists infiltrated Indian territory days before the incident,” Mr Kumar questioned, “How did heavily armed infiltrators remain undetected? How were nearly a thousand tourists allowed at a vulnerable site barely 100 km from Srinagar when heightened security and combing operations were underway ahead of the Prime Minister’s now-postponed visit on 19 April?”

The CPI also condemned “attempts by sections of the media and right-wing forces to communalise the tragedy,” which, the party said, led to the killing of a young Muslim man in Agra.

“This is exactly what the terrorists want—to divide India. The Union government and state governments must remain vigilant and act swiftly to prevent any communal provocations,” said Mr Kumar, asserting that “terrorism is not a Hindu-Muslim issue” and must be addressed by building national consensus.

Reaffirming its commitment to the fight against terrorism, the CPI urged the Union government to take “inclusive, responsible, and effective steps.”

“India must face this challenge and defeat terrorism unitedly—through consensus,” said Mr Kumar.

“The government must deal with terrorism with utmost seriousness and act decisively to isolate its sponsors—both diplomatically and financially—by mobilising global opinion and taking the entire nation into confidence,” the statement concluded.