Alcoholic Mann vs favourite Pappu quote: Congress, AAP make Punjab battle personal

The battle in Punjab ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections has turned ugly with the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) trading below-the-belt blows. The attacks are increasingly getting personal. Right after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of smelling of alcohol even at 11 in the morning during his days in Parliament, the AAP retaliated by mocking Gandhi as "Pappu", asking people to share their favourite jokes of him. The AAP also said "similar allegations" had been made against Gandhi too. The spat has turned ugly between two INDIA bloc partners who are now allies only in name.The war of words comes three to four months before Punjab is expected to vote. The AAP is in power in Punjab, and the Congress is the primary opposition party.Rahul Gandhi launched the Congress's Punjab poll campaign at the Insaaf Rally in Sangrur on Wednesday (November 4), following his controversial foreign trip and the Opposition protests in New Delhi against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.With Punjab heading for Assembly elections in early 2027, alcohol and drug abuse have become major flashpoints in the three-way battle between the Congress, the AAP and the BJP. While the Congress is targeting CM Mann over his alleged drinking habits and failure to curb drugs, the AAP has launched an attack on Rahul Gandhi over what the Arvind Kejriwal-led party called "personal attacks". After Rahul Gandhi alleged that Mann could not fight Punjab's drug menace while being intoxicated daily, the AAP's Saurabh Bharadwaj accused him of making "below-the-belt attacks". The AAP also appeared irked that Rahul Gandhi was targeting its government in Punjab instead of taking on the BJP and its chief ministers in other states.The AAP went a step further, mocking Gandhi as "Pappu" on X and asking people to share their "favourite Pappu quote". Then, the AAP offered its own pick. "If I put potatoes in from one side, gold will come out from the other," the AAP said on X. Now, it seems like a contest over who is the bigger addict.Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi launched a sharp attack on Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann over the state’s drug crisis, questioning his ability to tackle the problem. Speaking at the Congress’s Insaaf Rally in Sangrur on November 4, Gandhi alleged that he had noticed the smell of alcohol coming from Mann during a Parliament sitting at around 11 am, recalling their interactions as MPs. "This CM Bhagwant Mann used to crack jokes in Lok Sabha while sitting with is and liquor smell came from him at 11:00 am," he said. "I am not saying he should not drink, as it is his personal matter. But if you have to fight against nasha, then your CM cannot do nasha every evening," Gandhi further added. The Congress leader's remarks came as he began campaigning in Punjab ahead of next year's Assembly elections, in which the Congress will take on the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), its INDIA bloc ally at the national level. Read more: https://t.co/rkd2mTb2OY | @AseemBassi #RahulGandhi #BhagwantMann #Punjab #PunjabPolitics #Congress— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) November 5, 2026RAHUL GANDHI'S ALCOHOL JAB AT BHAGWANT MANNAddressing the rally in Punjab CM Mann's home district of Sangrur on Wednesday, Rahul Gandhi recalled their time together in the Lok Sabha."In Lok Sabha, he [Mann] used to crack jokes sitting with us. At 11 am, he used to smell of alcohol. I am not saying Bhagwant Mann should not consume alcohol; it is his personal matter. But if you want to fight drugs, the chief minister can't get intoxicated every evening," Gandhi said.Before becoming the Punjab CM, Mann was a two-term AAP Lok Sabha MP from Sangrur between 2014 and March 2022. Then, Rahul Gandhi was a Congress MP from Amethi until 2019 and then from Wayanad.In Sangrur, Rahul Gandhi also questioned the AAP's promise to eradicate drugs, particularly chitta, an adulterated form of heroin, from Punjab."What promise did it make? That will end the drug menace in Punjab. I want to ask the AAP, from which corner of the state has it wiped out drugs?" he asked.Rahul Gandhi also accused AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal of controlling the Punjab administration from Delhi."Here, Amit Shah holds half the reins, Kejriwal holds the other half, and Bhagwant Mann is sitting there. Punjab is being run from Delhi," Gandhi alleged.AAP ? , ? AAP , BJP B-Team ! , AAP , : ' ' @kharge ,— Indian Youth Congress (@IYC) November 4, 2026AAP HITS BACK AT CONGRESS WITH PAPPU JIBEThe AAP's response to the claim of Mann getting drunk even in the morning, was equally personal. In a post on X, the party mocked Gandhi using the nickname frequently employed by his political opponents."Tell us your favourite Pappu quote!" the AAP handle on posted.The handle picked its favourite quote, saying, "If I put potatoes in from one side, gold will come out from the other."Rahul Gandhi made the remark at an election rally in Gujarat's Patan in November 2017, while mocking what he claimed were Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promises to farmers. A clipped video made it appear that Gandhi himself was promising to turn potatoes into gold, though the full speech showed him attributing the claim to Modi.Hours before the AAP launched the "Pappu's favourite quote", the AAP's Delhi unit chief, Saurabh Bharadwaj, launched an offensive at Rahul Gandhi and the Congress."There have been such allegations against Rahul Gandhi as well. But mere allegations don't do anything. I think at his level, Rahul Gandhi should not have said such petty things," Bharadwaj said.Questioning the Congress's political priorities, he asked, "I want to ask Rahul Gandhi and the Congress: who is their biggest enemy? Is it the BJP or the Opposition parties?""Did Rahul Gandhi launch such a despicable attack on Yogi ji? Did he say this to Pushkar Singh Dhami? Did he say this to Goa CM? Such below the belt attacks by Rahul Gandhi show his petty politics," he said.Bharadwaj accused both the Congress and BJP of targeting Punjab because it had an Opposition party government.KHARGE, CHANNI JOIN CONGRESS ATTACK ON AAPAfter AAP's "Tell us your favourite joke" post, the Congress AICC secretary and organiser of the Congress Seva Dal, Srinivas BV, shared a poster on X mocking the AAP as the "BJP's B-team".The poster showed Arvind Kejriwal emerging from a torn poster dressed in an RSS-style uniform, complete with khaki shorts, a white shirt and a black cap. The poster carried the caption, "Phata poster, nikla chaddi," a play on the popular Hindi phrase "Phata poster, nikla hero".Rahul Gandhi was not the only Congress leader to target Punjab CM Mann and Kejriwal at the Sangrur rally. Kharge accused the AAP government of corruption and alleged that money collected in Punjab was being sent to Delhi. "In my 60 years of public life as an MLA, MP and Rajya Sabha member, I have never seen such a corrupt government. This is the most corrupt government," Kharge said.Former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi also attacked Mann over his alleged drinking habits. "Bhagwant Mann, you are a habitual drinker. How can someone who drinks every day govern Punjab?" Channi said.Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa compared the alleged looting of Punjab under the AAP to the invasions of 18th century Afghan invader Ahmad Shah Abdali."Ahmad Shah Abdali looted Punjab in history. Kejriwal, Sisodia, Jain and Bhagwant Mann's gang have looted Punjab in the same way," Bajwa alleged.The confrontation between the incumbent AAP and the Congress, which the Kejriwal-led party unseated to come to power in Punjab, comes just ahead of the Assembly elections, expected around February-March 2027. The current Assembly's term ends on March 16, although the Election Commission has not announced the polling schedule. The AAP, which swept to power in 2022, is seeking another term, while the Congress is attempting a comeback. Both parties from the Opposition bloc are fighting each other in Punjab.Meanwhile, the BJP, looking to expand its footprint in Punjab and exploring a possible reunion with the Akali Dal, is making the most of the Congress-AAP feud by targeting both over the state's drug crisis, armed with the Centre's "Drug Free India" policy. As the Congress and the AAP target one another and get personal, the BJP is targeting both in equal measure.- Ends