Rahul Gandhi's student-idiot-andhbhakt barb sparks uproar in Parliament

Rahul Gandhi told the Lok Sabha about a conversation with a student and said there were three categories of people: students, idiots and andhbhakts. The remark led to tempestuous scenes in the House on Wednesday.Rahul Gandhi in ParliamentTempestuous scenes were seen in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday after Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, citing a conversation with a student, said there were three categories of people - "students", "idiots" and "andhbhakts (blind loyalists)". Rahul said the 18-year-old described "students" as those who seek knowledge and are willing to listen to others, while "idiots" were those who refuse to hear differing views.It was enough to spark fireworks in the Lok Sabha, with the NDA MPs objecting to the "idiot" remark and demanding that it be expunged. Speaking during a debate on amendments to the anti-paper leak law, Rahul recounted a conversation with a young woman on what it meant to be a student.Rahul said the woman described a student as "someone with an open mind and an open heart". "There is another group of people... who are not students; they know everything... they believe that they are God. They are arrogant, they don't listen, they don't respect other people's truths, the student called them idiots," the Congress MP said.Rahul said he then asked the student about the third category - 'andhbhakt'. "The student said andhbhakt is a person who is absolutely convinced that another idiot is God," he further said. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju was quickly up on his feet, demanding that the "unparliamentary" words be expunged. "I believe that he (Rahul) is using a word in the name of a student, but it is he who is using it," Rijiju said.- EndsPublished By: Abhishek DePublished On: Jul 29, 2026 13:45 IST