Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday exchanged barbs with former party colleague and union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu in Parliament premises.
In videos released by the Congress, Rahul was heard calling Bittu "a traitor" and the minister retorting with "desh ke dushman" (enemy of the nation) jibe.
The incident took place right outside Parliament's Makar Dwar, the main entrance which MPs take to enter the new Parliament building, where Rahul was standing in solidarity with suspended Congress MPs, mostly from Punjab.
As soon as he was about to speak, Bittu passed by, and remarked, "they (suspended Congress MPs are sitting here as if they have won a war".
Rahul hit back, "The thing is, here is a traitor walking right by. Take a look at the face. How he looks." Rahul then extended his hand towards Bittu for a handshake, and said, "Hello brother, my traitor friend".
"Don't worry, you will come back (to the Congress)", Rahul added addressing the Union Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing.
Bittu, however, declined to shake hands with Gandhi and, while pointing to him, said, "desh ke dushman." The union minister was seen in the videos springing past the Makar Dwar stairs, repeating his "desh ke dushman" charge while pointing at the Congress leaders and suspended MPs, who continued to jeer at him.
They were also heard saying, "surrender, surrender".
Bittu, the grandson of late Punjab chief minister Beant Singh, was a former MP of the Congress from Ludhiana and Anandpur Sahib before he switched sides to the BJP ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
In a sharply-worded statement on X, Delhi environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said the language used by Gandhi against a Sikh leader was “absolutely unacceptable” and reflected a mindset that did not change since the ‘80s.
“A Sikh is a Sardar who can never be a traitor. If there is any ‘gaddar’ (traitor), it is the Gandhi family,” Sirsa said, accusing the Congress of repeatedly insulting Sikhs.
He alleged that the Congress leadership was responsible for attacking the Golden Temple in Amritsar with tanks and cannons (in 1984) and demolishing the Akal Takht Sahib, calling it an act of betrayal against the Sikh faith.
“They were traitors when they destroyed the sacred Akal Takht Sahib, when innocent Sikhs were burnt alive. This is an insult to Sikhs and will not be tolerated,” Sirsa said, adding that the “poison of the ‘80s still lingers in the Congress’ mindset”.
Slamming Rahul for his remarks, BJP leader Arvinder Singh Lovely said the entire Sikh community is extremely anguished over the Congress leader calling Bittu a traitor.
"It is unfortunate," Lovely said.
The Congress MPs had been protesting the suspension of eight Opposition members from the Lok Sabha earlier in the day. The eight MPs were suspended for the rest of the Budget Session for violating House rules and throwing papers at the chair.
These MPs include Congress members Hibi Eden, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Manickam Tagore, Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Prashant Yadaorao Padole, Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy, and Dean Kuriakose, as well as CPM MP S Venkatesan.