NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi wanted a debate. Kiren Rijiju gave him homework instead.
On Wednesday, the Union minister posted a seven-point list on X telling the Congress leader what he should do if his party wants to win more seats in Parliament. The post came after Gandhi challenged Prime Minister Modi to a face-to-face debate.
Rijiju, who handles parliamentary affairs for the government, started with a dig. Gandhi should “spend more time in India,” he wrote, and stop taking “secret foreign vacations.” Next, he said Gandhi should honor his elders and learn from them. Also, he should avoid those Rijiju labeled as “anti-India.”
The rest of the list was about politics. Rijiju asked Gandhi to give up his “deep hatred” of the BJP, the RSS and Modi, and to treat the BJP as a rival, not an enemy. He said MPs should get to speak in debates, and that Gandhi should respect the Constitution and the country’s official bodies. The last tip was aimed at Gandhi’s own party. Rijiju said the Congress should work like a true democracy and end “dynastic politics,” which means power staying within one family.
Earlier that day, Rijiju had also shared an old clip from Parliament. In the video, opposition MPs walk out while he is speaking. He asked why they had wasted the House’s time for days if they could not stand to hear the truth. People who do not believe in debate, he wrote, were now the ones asking for one.
How it all started
The fight began on Tuesday. Gandhi said he wanted to debate Modi on the claim that the opposition is “anti-national.” He also asked why nobody had filed a defamation case against him, after he said the prime minister was in office with foreign help. A defamation case is a court case over untrue words that hurt someone’s good name.
On Wednesday, Gandhi raised the stakes at a Congress event called the “Insaaf Rally” in Sangrur. Modi could pick any judge and any place, he said. Then came the big claim: within five minutes, Gandhi said, he could prove that the prime minister was a “traitor” and that US President Donald Trump controls Modi. He added that he did not believe Modi would ever agree to sit across from him.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman responded without delay, calling out the “traitor” charge.
What next?
Neither side is stepping back. The BJP and the Congress trade sharp words all the time, so this is nothing new. But a direct call for a debate is harder to ignore, and so far there is no sign that Modi will accept it.
