NEW DELHI: If the US Congress is an influence-peddling battleground for India and Pakistan post-Article 370, India had a relatively good week. After being battered by Pakistan-sponsored voices in recent days, Indian and Indian-American sympathisers have reclaimed some of their voice.

Three Congressional leaders have pushed back against a chorus against India and its actions in Jammu & Kashmir . Pete Olson, Francis Rooney and George Holding have all stood up in the House of Representatives to support India’s actions in the Valley.

On Thursday, Francis Rooney said, “Islamic insurgents are a constant threat, spreading terror throughout J&K and elsewhere in India. We should support the government in Delhi in the continued fight against terror. India also faces an increasingly aggressive and assertive China that continues to export its malign influence throughout the Indo-Pacific region.”

The concerns of Islamic extremism, which were almost absent in the earlier debate in the US, also reflect a problem India is facing in UK where political uncertainty and looming elections have seen a mobilisation against India. Groups claiming to represent Muslim interests have targetted candidates they see as “anti-Islamic” and Article 370 is in the direct line of fire.

In the US, Pete Olson said earlier, “For 70 straight years, this temporary article has forced citizens of J&K to live under different laws than all other Indians ... Earlier this year, the Indian Parliament confirmed that Article 370’s temporary status should end. It gave the people of J&K the same rights as all Indians.”

India’s diplomacy on Capitol Hill has had to be ramped up as Pakistan is on overdrive to sponsor or support anti-India initiatives through their diaspora as well as some well-funded lobby organisations. Initially, India was seen to be floundering before the system tapped into its resources both within the community and with the lawmakers to tell India’s story better.

It is no coincidence that all three Congressmen are Republicans, a party that has been more understanding of India’s actions than the Democrats. That might become a bigger problem for two reasons — in the next elections, Democrats are expected to retake the House and their politics are moving so far to the Left that it might render them unsympathetic to India’s actions. It is much the same in UK where Labour has shifted more Left and there are elements of convergence with Muslim groups.

In fact, former President Barack Obama sounded ala- rm bells about the “progressive” turn of the Democrats. Some go so far as to say that the party is now the playground for political opinion typified by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib. These young political leaders are also believed to represent millennials and have conflated a strong liberal sentiment with “Islamophobia”. For their critics, they seem to endorse Islamists.

India at this point is seen to be on the opposite side. It led to Indian-origin lawmaker Premila Jayapal to take a strong anti-Indian stance, as the current chair of the Progressive Democrats. Even older Democrat leaders like Brad Sherman and Eliot Engels who may have been more sympathetic to India believe they should sharpen their “liberal” credentials to win elections, say sources in Washington. The upshot is that the bi-partisan consensus that India enjoyed may become harder to maintain.

Political watchers in London reckon the next Parliament might have Muslim heritage MPs as the largest minority group in the House. In the last week, Labour Party leadership did some course corrections and a letter issued by the Labour Party president Ian Lavery appeared to distance the party from its Kashmir resolution as well as Jeremy Corbyn’s comments. But this may only be a balancing act.

