India abstains from IMF vote to provide additional funds to Pakistan

India raises concerns in IMF about funding to Pakistan, abstains from vote due to poor track record and terrorism links.

India on Friday (May 9, 2025) announced that it had raised concerns in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) about the efficacy of its funding to Pakistan. India also said it had abstained from the vote to provide additional funding to the cash-strapped country, citing Pakistan’s “poor track record” and the fact that the IMF is bound by “procedural and technical formalities”.

The Executive Board of the IMF met on Friday (May 9, 2025) to vote on disbursing $1 billion out of a total $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) to Pakistan and to extend a further $1.3 billion to the cash-strapped nation as a Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). 

Also Read: Operation Sindoor LIVE | Drones sighted in Jammu, Samba & Pathankot, being engaged, Defence sources say

“As an active and responsible member country, India raised concerns over the efficacy of IMF programs in case of Pakistan given its poor track record, and also on the possibility of misuse of debt financing funds for state sponsored cross border terrorism,” the Ministry of Finance (MoF) said in a statement.

The Congress party was quick to criticise the Government over its decision to abstain, saying that India had “chickened out”.

“On April 29th, the INC had demanded that India vote against the IMF loan to Pakistan, which was considered today by its Executive Board,” the Congress’ General Secretary in-charge of Communications Jairam Ramesh posted on X. “India has only abstained from the vote. The Modi Government has chickened out. A strong NO would have sent a powerful signal.”

The MoF statement pointed out that Pakistan has been a “prolonged borrower” from the IMF, with a “very poor track record” of implementation and of adherence to the IMF’s program conditions.