Prakash Sngh
This is probably the most gruesome morning news story for India currently. On the 29th of October, 2025, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi stood in front of the Indian Navy and said something memorable.
He referred to the Indian Navy as the guardian of the Indian Ocean. The crowd booed and cheered loudly.
In less than five months, an Indian warship that India had invited personally to its shores was destroyed and then sunk by the United States.
In its backyard. India has not spoken for more than 24 hours. Questions being asked by India today are stingy and uncomfortable.
What is a guardian if you are unable to defend your own guest?
What Happened: The IRIS Dena Incident
| Detail | Information |
| Ship Sunk | IRIS Dena, Iranian Navy frigate |
| Date of Sinking | 4 March 2026, in the early morning local time |
| Location | International waters, approximately. 40 nautical miles to the south of Galle, Sri Lanka |
| Weapon Used | Mark 48 torpedo, heavyweight launched by US Navy fast-attack submarine |
| Historical Significance | The first occasion since WWII that a US submarine has sunk an enemy surface vessel |
| Crew on Board | Around 182 sailors |
| Deaths Confirmed | 87 bodies were recovered by the Sri Lanka Navy |
| Survivors Rescued | 32 sailors, which includes the commander and the most senior officers |
| Missing Sailors | Around 10 are still missing |
| Ship’s Last Port of Call | Visakhapatnam, India (MILAN 2026 naval exercise) |
| India’s Response Time | More than 24 hours before the time that the Indian Navy issued any formal statement |
| Modi’s First Public Comment | 5 March 2026, during a meeting with Finnish President Stubb |
The IRIS Dena had visited India as an official guest. It participated in Exercise MILAN 2026, India’s flagship multilateral naval drill, which was held in Visakhapatnam between February 15 and February 25.
India invited 74 nations to take part. Iran was one of the participants. India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh personally inaugurated the exercise.
Indian Navy social media accounts published proud photos of the IRIS Dena sailing alongside other vessels.
On the 25th of February, the day that MILAN ended, the IRIS Dena left Visakhapatnam to return home to Iran.
On the 4th of March, 40 nautical miles to the south of Sri Lanka, a US Navy submarine fired a single torpedo at the hull of the ship.
The ship was sunk within minutes. The Sri Lankan Navy, not India, was in charge of the effort to rescue.
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Modi’s Silence: Why It Became a Political Crisis
Over 24 Hours With No Statement
It’s the trending news that shook India’s political arena. Following the sinking of IRIS Dena on the 4th of March The Indian government did not make any public statements for over 24 hours.
There was no statement from the Prime Minister. A statement was not issued by the Foreign Ministry. No phone call to Iran. No acknowledgment to the world.
The Iranian ambassador to India, Mohammad Fathali, told reporters in New Delhi on Thursday that there were no talks and no communication from India.
He said simply: You can contact them. His quiet words spoke volumes.
It was only on Thursday night, over an entire day following the sinking, that the Indian Navy issued a formal statement.
It claimed it had received a distress signal and thought of the possibility of deploying resources. However, when India was considering a response, Sri Lanka had already been leading the rescue. India was late in responding to its own home emergency.
US submarine Sank IRIS Dena: Opposition Attacks Modi Directly
It is today’s news that has created an uproar within Indian politics. The opposition Congress party president, Mallikarjun Kharge, said the Modi government’s silence was an irresponsible abandonment of India’s national and strategic interests.
He said the fact that an Iranian ship, which was India’s unarmed guest been hit by torpedoes within the Indian Ocean Region, while the government remained quiet.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi was sharper. He claimed that the war had reached India’s backyard through an Iranian warship sinking within the Indian Ocean, and yet Modi had not spoken up.
He described Modi as a compromising PM who had renounced India’s sovereignty.
Congress MP Jairam Ramesh pointed out that Defence Minister Singh personally inaugurated the exercise that IRIS Dena attended just days before her sinking.
He called the silence of the government shocking and stated that never before has the Indian government appeared so sluggish and smug.
Congress MP Supriya Shrinate said that the Iranian Navy were guests of India. She claimed the US submarine attacked their ship and killed them as they were returning home.
She criticized Modi for not releasing any condemnation.
US submarine Sank IRIS Dena: What Experts Are Saying
The new news has drawn sharp criticism from India’s diplomatic and military community, which is now retired.
The former Indian Navy Chief Admiral Arun Prakash said that the sinking of the Iranian ship with torpedoes meant that a US submarine was operating within the Indian Ocean Region without India’s knowledge.
He said it was extremely worrying.
Former diplomat Kanwal Sibal, who was India’s Foreign Secretary between 2002 and 2003, stated that India was not militarily or politically accountable for the US attack.
However, he said the responsibility of India was on a moral and human level. He claimed that the US did not respect India’s sensibilities since the vessel was in the waters due to India’s own invitation.
Defence analyst Bhaskar identified the incident as an embarrassing strategic blunder for India. He said it hurt the credibility of New Delhi on the Indian Ocean and that India’s moral standing has taken damage due to the government’s utter silence.
A former naval officer, Sinha, who was in the Indian Navy for four decades, said that the ongoing battle between the US and Israel on the one hand and Iran on the other hand had been able to reach India’s backyard.
Sinha said that the freedom India once enjoyed within the Indian Ocean had apparently shrunk.
US submarine Sank IRIS Dena: PM Modi Responds
When Modi finally spoke publicly, the venue was carefully selected. On Thursday, March 5, he met Finland’s President Alexander Stubb in New Delhi.
In an official declaration, Modi said military conflict is not the only way to find the solution to any problem that arises, whether it be Ukraine or West Asia. He emphasized dialogue and diplomacy.
He didn’t mention IRIS Dena’s name. He did not mention the fact that the vessel was India’s navy guest. He did not make any comment about the US attack on India’s maritime area.
His remarks were shrewd, ambiguous and diplomatically prudent.
This cautionary tale reveals India’s deep problem. India has a long-standing relationship with Iran. It has also moved closer to the United States under Modi, particularly in security and defence issues.
India’s response towards the Iran crisis is a sign that it is trying to maintain a balance with important regional actors while defending its own security, energy and investment interests.
But this balance comes at an expense. The cost right now is being seen by the world.
US submarine Sank IRIS Dena: India’s Guardian Claim
The claim of India as the leading security provider for the Indian Ocean is not new. In the year 2015, Modi launched SAGAR, Security and Growth for All in the region.
In 2025, the SAGAR was changed to MAHASAGAR. India has provided ships for patrol, coastal radars, and even training for smaller Indian Ocean nations to build their maritime capabilities.
Being a guardian is more than just donating vessels to small nations. It’s about that you are present whenever something important occurs in your own backyard marine environment.
It’s about being present when a ship that you personally invited to attack the waters of your own. As a result, the sinking of IRIS Dena has exposed the real limitations of India’s role as a guardian.
As The Diplomat stated, by being in a solitary position during the sinking of an enemy warship close to its waters, India is undermining its own credibility as a guarantee of security within the Indian Ocean Region.
US submarine Sank IRIS Dena: Conclusion
In the news this morning, one story stands out above all others is a call for India to examine its own self-reflection.
The IRIS Dena was India’s guest. It arrived after India called. It left after India’s exercise came to an end. It was destroyed by America before it reached back home. And India was silent.
This silence could be diplomatically advisable. However, it came with a cost. India’s reputation as an Indian Ocean guardian has taken serious damage.
The opposition is furious. Former naval officers and diplomats are worried. Iran is monitoring. The region is watching too.
Modi’s message of dialogue and diplomacy is a good one, in principle. However, words are not as important when the world has experienced what India did and didn’t do during the days following IRIS Dena.
Keep an eye on us for the most up-to-date trending news on India’s foreign policy as well as the Middle East crisis.
