Why Modi’s volte face on Sunita Williams is newsworthy

The astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore splashed down off the coast of Florida early on the morning of March 19, India time, after spending nine months on board the International Space Station.

They were greeted with messages of relief from around the world. Williams and Wilmore had arrived at the station in June 2024 for what was to have been an eight-day stay, but the Boeing craft on which they were to return developed technical snags, forcing them to extend their stay to 286 days.

Among those who extended hearty welcomes to the astronauts were Indian politicians. Though she is an American citizen, Williams’s father was from Mehsana in Gujarat and she still has close family in the state. Many Indians, and especially those from Gujarat, view her storied career as a military pilot and then an astronaut as a source of pride.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote, “Sunita Williams and the #Crew9 astronauts have once again shown us what perseverance truly means.”

In another letter, written earlier this month, Modi invited William to India, stating, “It will be a pleasure for India to host one of its most illustrious daughters.”

This effusive warmth and praise stood in sharp contrast to Modi’s attitude towards Williams in the past. In 2007, after Williams...

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