Congress leader Rahul Gandhi sparked a controversy at home with his critical remarks about the BJP and PM Modi’s rule during his three-day trip to the United States this week. This was Gandhi’s first visit to the US as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. Rahul’s programmes included engaging with the IndianAmerican community and students, and meeting with officials and lawmakers. The BJP’s angry response shows that the party is upset about many of his controversial comments.

Gandhi chose his topics after careful consideration. He commented on the RSS, India’s democracy, Modi’s China policy, and religious freedom in India, among other things. In India, the BJP criticised his adverse comments and meeting with US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who has been critical of India’s policies. Rahul claimed that Indian democracy was broken over the last decade but is gradually recovering. He also highlighted that 90 per cent of India’s population, including OBCs, Dalits, and Adivasis, are not able to participate in the democratic process actively. This angered the BJP. While Rahul agreed with Modi’s policies on Pakistan and Bangladesh, he felt the China policy was flawed. Rahul said, “We’ve got Chinese troops occupying land the size of Delhi in Ladakh.

I think that’s a disaster.” On RSS, Gandhi said that the BJP’s parent organisation believes India is “one idea”, but the Congress considers it a “diversity of ideas. Upset by the attempt to dent the Prime Minister’s image abroad, the BJP fielded top leaders to refute Rahul’s allegations, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh leading the response. He rubbished Rahul’s claim on the China policy. He observed it was “extremely shameful” that the LOP is hurting the dignity of India by saying “misleading, baseless and factless things.” Rahul Gandhi supported the caste census and claimed that BJP was trying to end reservations. Union Minister Amit Shah affirmed that they would not allow anyone to abolish reservations or undermine the nation’s security.

In addition, BJP leader and senior minister Hardeep Puri refuted Rahul’s remarks about Sikhs. Puri said, “I am a proud Sikh, and I have been wearing a turban for over six decades and a kada for even longer…” The BJP’s angry counter is because the party takes a severe view because of Rahul’s increased stature after leading the ‘Bharat Jodo’ yatra, a nationwide campaign to unite the country. Now that Rahul has become the LOP, the BJP must give him his due respect. First, the Congress continues to survive despite Modi’s vow of a Congress- Mukth Bharat. In the 2024 elections, much to the dismay of the BJP, Congress doubled its numbers. Second, the opposition INDIA coalition has been strengthened after the 2024 polls. The BJP had to form the government with the help of allies. Third, Rahul visited the US just before Modi’s scheduled visit on September 22. His trip was well received, which did not please the BJP.

But Modi would get a bigger welcome as a significant event planned is ‘Modi and the United States progress together.” The BJP criticised Rahul for meeting Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who has in the past taken anti-India positions both within the US Congress and outside. The BJP believes that such meetings can be used for antiIndia propaganda. Gandhi claims she was part of the lawmaker’s delegation, and he could not decline to meet the delegation. The United States also clarified that Rahul Gandhi’s meeting with top official Donald Lu in Washington was part of regular diplomatic engagement. Gandhi’s US visit was primarily meant to engage US lawmakers and the Indian-American community and to interact with students. It is part of his outreach to the diaspora. Rahul Gandhi talked about issues that make the government uncomfortable. They believe it’s wrong for the LOP to say negative things about the Indian government on foreign soil.

The BJP claims that Rahul made false and misleading statements about every issue when speaking overseas. Though there is no law, there is an unwritten code for citizens, including the Leader of the Opposition. The Congress counters that Modi also did the same by claiming Congress did nothing for the country during his foreign trips. Rahul clarified in the end, “The fight for democracy in India is Indian. It has nothing to do with anybody else. It’s our problem. And we’ll take care of it. We will make sure that democracy is secure.” And the BJP wants to know why he was not doing just that. The jury is out on whether Rahul crossed the red line. There is some merit in the BJP saying dirty linen should not be washed abroad. But this line holds good for both sides.