Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday, October 30, criticised Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over his reference to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as “Sitarama” in a post on X.
Reacting to Gandhi's choice of name, Sarma accused the Congress leader of using social media tactics to attract attention and suggested that the party should focus on electoral contests instead.
Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Hits Out At Rahul Gandhi
“Rahul Gandhi drops the last letter from the name of Hon’ble Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman. Now Congress says this is a new style of getting attention on X. Should we also start dropping the last alphabet from both ‘Rahul’ and ‘Gandhi’ just to get attention?” Sarma wrote.
He further advised the Congress to challenge the BJP through electoral battles rather than what he described as attention-seeking tactics on social media.
“A little unsolicited advice to Congress: Fight us on the ground, through both the ballot and the EVM, not through attention seeking tricks on social media,” he added.
How The Row Began
Sarma's remarks came after Gandhi, in a post on October 28, addressed the Finance Minister as “Dear Mrs. Sitarama” while raising questions about a reported meeting involving Tata Trusts and Tata Sons at Union Home Minister Amit Shah's residence.
“1. Which ‘legal and commercial matter’ required Tata Trusts and Tata Sons to be hosted at Amit Shah's residence?
2. When is crony number 1 going to appear in the game and which pieces of Tata is he going to get?
Finally, all India's businesses except 3-4 of your cronies, already hate all of you and don't need any incitement," Gandhi wrote.
Sitharaman Had Earlier Hit Back At Gandhi
Gandhi's post followed a response from Sitharaman, who had criticised him for allegedly politicising commercial and legal matters and making what she described as baseless allegations against the government.
In her post on X, the Finance Minister urged the Congress leader to refrain from treating every issue as a political controversy and questioned whether his remarks were intended to create distrust among business leaders.
Sitharaman also defended the Modi government's approach towards Indian industry, describing businesses and entrepreneurs as drivers of employment and economic growth.
The exchange began after Gandhi alleged that Tata was being “criminally destroyed” and accused business leaders of remaining silent out of fear.
The back-and-forth has since triggered a political exchange between leaders of the BJP and Congress, with Sarma's latest remarks adding another layer to the ongoing confrontation.
