Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come under criticism at home after newly released US Justice Department documents mentioned his 2017 Israel visit in an email written by late financier Jeffrey Epstein, Bloomberg reported.
India’s government quickly rejected the claim after the US Justice Department made public around three million pages linked to Epstein, a convicted sex offender who later died in custody.
Among the files was a July 2017 email sent by Epstein to a person identified as Y Jabor. In the message, Epstein referred to Modi’s visit to Israel and made a controversial claim.
In the email, Epstein alleged that Modi “took advice, and danced and sang in Israel for the benefit of the US president,” adding that the two leaders had met weeks earlier. The email offered no proof or background to support the statement.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that Modi did make an official visit to Israel in July 2017. However, it strongly rejected the email’s description. “Beyond the fact of the Prime Minister’s official visit to Israel in July 2017, the rest of the allusions in the email are little more than trashy ruminations by a convicted criminal, which deserve to be dismissed with the utmost contempt,” said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.
India’s opposition Congress party seized on the documents and criticised Modi. The party called the alleged link with Epstein “ extremely shameful” and demanded clear answers from the government.
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Congress leaders also questioned Epstein’s claim that Modi “took advice and danced and sang in Israel for the benefit of the US President,” asking about the nature of any interaction before Modi’s 2017 visits to the US and Israel.
Pakistani politician Mushahid Hussain Syed also mocked the Indian prime minister, saying: "Prime Minister Modi who, despite being a Yogi & Brahmachari, had no compunction in seeking advice & guidance from a certified paedophile like Epstein on how to please President Trump during his 2017 visit to Israel!”
The controversy comes amid earlier remarks by former US President Donald Trump. Trump recalled a meeting with Modi and said the Indian leader sought permission to see him during discussions on defence sales and trade.
Trump also said India had been waiting for US-made Apache attack helicopters and had ordered 68 of them, while speaking about defence demand and trade leverage.
The issue is based on a single email with no evidence. India has firmly rejected the claim and called it baseless. Still, the controversy shows how old documents can reignite political debate.
