Iran has formally invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the state funeral of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, with New Delhi weighing the level of representation it will send to the ceremonies scheduled from July 4 to July 9 across Iran and Iraq.
The invitation was extended by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and delivered to the Ministry of External Affairs through the Iranian Embassy in New Delhi on Tuesday, diplomatic sources said.
While there has been no official word on whether Modi will attend, sources indicated that India is expected to send a high-level delegation. If the Prime Minister does not travel to Iran, Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan is considered the most likely choice to lead the delegation, in line with past protocol for major state ceremonies in Tehran.
Khamenei, 86, was killed on February 28 in a joint US-Israeli airstrike on his compound in Tehran. His funeral was initially expected in March but was postponed amid continuing regional hostilities.
India formally conveyed its condolences a week after his assassination. And it was only on March 5 that Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri visited the Iranian Embassy in New Delhi and signed the condolence book on behalf of the Government of India.
The conflict also affected India directly. On March 1, an Indian crew member aboard the Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker MKD Vyom was killed after the vessel was struck by a drone boat in the Gulf of Oman. The sailor was the first reported Indian casualty of the conflict, underscoring concerns in New Delhi over maritime security, energy supplies and regional stability.
Funeral ceremonies will begin on July 4 with Khamenei’s body lying in state at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla complex. Public processions in Tehran will be followed by ceremonies in Qom on July 7, with memorial events in the Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala before the final burial in Mashhad on July 9.
Iran has invited a broad range of foreign leaders and governments, with delegations from Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, Russia, China, Syria, Lebanon and several Central Asian countries expected to attend. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has already announced that a Pakistani delegation will participate.
Former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal said India should ensure senior-level representation.
“This is an opportunity to convey a positive political message to Iran,” Sibal said. “It will also convey a message against political assassination of foreign leaders.”
According to Sibal, ongoing diplomatic engagement between Washington and Tehran has made participation easier for countries such as India. “The ongoing peace talks between the US and Iran have created the necessary space for us,” he added.
The invitation to attend Khamenei’s funeral comes amid sustained diplomatic engagement between New Delhi and Tehran. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi recently visited New Delhi for the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, where he held talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and met Prime Minister Modi.
Modi and President Pezeshkian last met on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit 2024 in Kazan in October 2024, where Modi invited the Iranian leader to visit India.
India’s response to the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May 2024 may offer a precedent. New Delhi declared a day of state mourning and sent then Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar to Tehran for the official memorial ceremony.
A similar approach is now being considered, with Vice-President Radhakrishnan emerging as the most likely representative should Modi decide not to attend.
