BJP alleges Rahul Gandhi spread misinformation on police action, demands apology

BJP MP Sambit Patra. File | Photo Credit: PTI The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday (July 29, 2026) demanded an apology from the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi for what it described as spreading misinformation in an attempt to create confusion, provoke unrest, and derive political benefit.Also read | Rahul Gandhi attacks government, RSS over students’ protest in Lok SabhaAt a press conference, BJP MP and spokesperson Sambit Patra said Mr. Gandhi falsely claimed in the Lok Sabha that bullets were fired at the students’ march to Parliament on July 20, 2026. Since no such incident occurred, his charge that Amit Shah ordered the firing was also false, Mr. Patra said. The allegation was also inaccurate because decisions about the use of force are taken on the spot by the area magistrate, and not the Home Minister, he said.“During the movements in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, you shot and killed hundreds of students. In Jammu & Kashmir, you fired bullets. In Assam, you fired on the Assam students’ union and brutally killed over 800 students. At that time, the only concern was how the next generation of the Gandhi family would continue becoming Prime Minister,” Mr. Patra said, adding that the present government was focused on the concerns of the ‘Gen Z’.The BJP leader accused Mr. Gandhi of insulting students by dividing the protesters at Jantar Mantar into three categories — “students”, “idiots”, and “andhbhakt” (blind devotees), and of repeatedly using the unparliamentary word “idiot” in the Lok Sabha. The Congress leader also falsely claimed that his microphone had been switched off in order to “play the victim card”, Mr. Patra alleged.He rejected Mr. Gandhi’s claim that Mr. Shah was “trembling” inside a car, saying that the Home Minister was a strong leader who had taken decisive action against Naxalism and terrorism. Mr. Patra also accused Congress leaders of trying to lower the morale of the armed forces by alleging that they were tearing girls’ clothes during the protests.Countering Mr. Gandhi’s charge that he was not allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha, Mr. Patra said about 45 MPs participated in the debate on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026.“Rahul Gandhi alleged that Union Ministers Kiren Rijiju and Rajnath Singh interrupted his speech...The objections raised a couple of times by Union Minister Kiren Rijiju was about the use of unparliamentary word ‘idiot’ by Rahul Gandhi, as such language is prohibited in the House under parliamentary rules,” he said.“Defence Minister and Deputy Leader of the House Rajnath Singh also rose to make an appeal that Rahul Gandhi present his views, and urged the members of the Treasury Benches to listen to him attentively. What greater example of democratic tradition could there be?” Mr. Patra said.“When the CJP [Cockroach Janta Party] and other associates staged the protest, Rahul Gandhi felt that the credit for it should have belonged to him. But once the agitation ended, the demonstrations ceased, and an agreement was reached following talks between the leaders of both sides [CJP and the Union Government], he was faced with the question of how to derive political mileage,” Mr. Patra said. Published - July 29, 2026 10:25 pm IST