'Iran must not fall': Congress MP flags India's strategic stakes as protests rock Tehran

As nationwide protests grip Iran amid a deepening economic crisis, Congress MP Abhishek Singhvi has cautioned against cheering what he sees as the possible collapse of a key regional power. He warned that Indian national interest should not be confused with ideological outrage.

"Iraq has fallen. Iran must not," the Congress leader said in a post on X. "Both were long-standing friends of India, consistently standing with us on Kashmir. A strong Iran has constrained Pakistan and checked Western overreach. Indians cheering its collapse confuse geopolitics with prejudice. National interest > borrowed outrage."

Iran is facing one of its most serious internal challenges in years, with protests spreading across all 31 provinces amid an economic meltdown and escalating international pressure. Foreign policy watchers have raised the possibility that the current regime may be headed for collapse.

However, Singhvi's position has drawn pushback from some quarters. Startup founder Vijay Raj questioned whether the current turmoil should be viewed as the collapse of Iran itself. "Why is this being seen as Iran's collapse, it's just the current autocracy's collapse. Shouldn't we be supporting Iranian people rather than the regime?" Raj said.

The protests, triggered by Iran's worsening economic conditions, have placed fresh strain on the country's theocratic leadership. Authorities have shut down internet and telephone networks as demonstrations have intensified, while the economy has continued to deteriorate under renewed international sanctions.

Economic pressure has increased since September, when the United Nations reimposed sanctions over Iran's atomic programme. The Iranian rial has since gone into free fall, now trading at over 1.4 million to the US dollar. Inflation is running at around 40 per cent annually, with prices surging for staples such as meat and rice.

According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, more than 500 protests have taken place nationwide. The group reported that at least 544 people have been killed and over 10,600 arrested.

The unrest began in late December with protests by merchants in Tehran. While initially driven by economic grievances, demonstrations soon turned overtly political, with chants against the Khamenei regime.

Anger has been simmering for years, particularly after the 2022 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody, which sparked mass protests across the country. Some demonstrators have voiced support for Iran's exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, who recently called for fresh protests on Thursday and Friday nights.

The crisis has also drawn warnings from the United States. US President Donald Trump has said Washington is closely monitoring events in Iran, issuing a threat that has taken on added significance after American troops captured Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro, a longtime ally of Tehran.

Trump has also threatened Iran that if Tehran "violently kills peaceful protesters", the US "will come to their rescue." "We're watching it very closely," Trump has said. "If they start killing people as they have in the past, I think they're going to get hit very hard by the United States."

(With inputs from Associated Press)