BJP MP Nishikant Dubey Questions Sonia Gandhi’s Treatment At Private Hospital; Congress Hits Back

A political row erupted on Thursday after BJP MP Nishikant Dubey questioned the treatment of senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi at a private hospital, triggering sharp reactions from the opposition.

Sonia Gandhi, Chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party, was admitted to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital on Tuesday night after experiencing respiratory issues. Hospital officials said she is stable, under observation, and being treated with antibiotics.

Amid this, Dubey took to X and raised questions over why Gandhi was not admitted to a government hospital such as All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). In his post, Dubey referred to reservation in government medical institutions and questioned whether the Congress leadership lacked trust in public healthcare facilities. "Rahul Gandhi ji, the treatment of Sonia Gandhi ji is happening at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, which is a private hospital where reservation does not apply. If the treatment were done at AIIMS, you would get doctors with 60 percent reservation there, don't you have faith in government hospitals?" Dubey wrote. He also mentioned the doctor treating Gandhi at the private hospital.

"We all wish for Sonia ji's good health, but what a state you've made of the Congress. Why do you want to divide society and break the country at George Soros's behest?" he added.

The remarks drew strong criticism from the Congress, with party MP Manickam Tagore condemning Dubey’s comments as “disgusting” and “insensitive.” Tagore accused the BJP leader of using a personal health situation to make political points and of spreading what he termed “caste-based rhetoric.”

In a strongly worded response, Tagore said that reservation is about social justice and representation, not a reflection on merit. He emphasised that doctors in premier institutions are defined by their expertise and service, not caste. He further alleged that such statements reflected a broader attempt to divide society along social lines.