Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge have come under fire from BJP leaders after they skipped Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Independence Day address at the Red Fort on Friday, 15 August.
The saffron party called the absence a sign of "disrespect" to the Prime Minister's office, the national flag and this year's celebration theme, Operation Sindoor.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Amit Malviya has shared a video of Rahul Gandhi at Congress headquarters during Independence Day celebrations and alleged that the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha "appeared visibly disoriented".
In a post on X, Malviya questioned Rahul Gandhi's absence during Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort. "Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition, was missing from the Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort. At the Congress HQ event, he appeared visibly disoriented. The nation deserves to know — is he well? And why did he choose to skip the official ceremony?" Malviya wrote.
Questioning Rahul Gandhi's commitment to national occasions, Malviya wrote: "For someone in his position, such absence sends a poor message about his commitment to national occasions."
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla, in a post on X, accused Rahul Gandhi of boycotting a "national celebration" due to political opposition to the PM Modi alleging it amounted to "Desh & Sena Virodh". The party also linked the absence to what it views as Congress's repeated opposition to Operation Sindoor, citing Gandhi's earlier remarks questioning the number of Indian aircraft lost and the role of foreign mediation in the operation's ceasefire.
This year's event invitations carried Operation Sindoor as the official theme. The BJP argued that the Congress leadership's absence gave the impression of undermining the armed forces and emboldening Pakistan.
Congress party has shared images of Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge unfurling the national flag at the party headquarters in Indira Bhavan, New Delhi.
