The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticized Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, for going to Vietnam to celebrate the New Year shortly after the death of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The BJP claimed that Rahul’s trip was disrespectful to Singh, especially since the country was in mourning for seven days.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said, “While everyone is sad about Manmohan Singh’s passing, Rahul Gandhi chose to go abroad. This shows that Congress doesn’t care about him. They insulted him when he was alive and are doing it again now. No Congress leader even went to collect his ashes, and they even refused him the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award.”
The Congress party responded by explaining that they didn’t attend the ceremony to sprinkle Manmohan Singh’s ashes because they wanted to give his family privacy.
Poonawalla also called Rahul Gandhi the “Leader of Tourism” because he seemed more focused on traveling than on mourning. He added, “Rahul had fun on the night of the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai, showing he isn’t concerned about Manmohan Singh.”
BJP leader Amit Malviya echoed these sentiments on social media, stating that Rahul traveling to Vietnam while the nation grieves shows his lack of respect for Singh.
In response, Congress MP Manickam Tagore argued that the BJP should stop trying to divert attention. He pointed out that denying Dr. Singh a proper place for his cremation was shameful. He added, “If Rahul travels privately, why does it matter to you? Happy New Year!”
Manmohan Singh passed away recently at the age of 92 and was cremated in Delhi.
Leave a Reply