BJP MP Nishikant Dubey on Tuesday doubled down on his claims that Soviet Russia covertly funded the Congress party, referring to both Central Investigative Agency (CIA) documents and defector Vassili Mitrokhin’s notebooks and added that the US also paid money to the grand old party to manage them.

Speaking to ANI, Dubey said, “The diaries of CIA and Mitrokhin mention that under the leadership of the late Congress leader HKL Bhagat, more than 150 Congress MPs were funded by Soviet Russia. It also mentions that Congress candidate Subhadra Joshi took Rs 5 lakh from the German government from 1977–80 in the name of elections, and after that, she became the president of the Indo-German Forum. If you look at it, it seemed that our country was sold to Soviet Russia under the leadership of the Gandhi family.”

He also referenced Cold War-era US involvement, alleging that American intelligence had its own influence over the Congress-led Indian government.

“On 10 May 1979, there was a discussion in Rajya Sabha... U.S. Ambassador Moynihan mentions in his book that he gave money to Indira Gandhi twice. There was a full debate on this... and I have mentioned the phone conversation between Nixon and Kissinger, in which they are talking about giving money, how Congress can be managed.”

On Monday, in an X post, Dubey had said: “Congress, Corruption, and Slavery. This unclassified secret document was released by the CIA in 2011. According to it, under the leadership of the late Congress leader HKL Bhagat, more than 150 Congress MPs were funded by Soviet Russia, acting as agents for Russia?” Dubey posted.

The Congress party and its allies on Tuesday dismissed Dubey’s remarks as bizarre and politically motivated.

Congress leader Dr. Ajoy Kumar said, “I demand that Nishikant Dubey should be immediately evaluated for his mental sanity. What is he saying? He should first ask Modiji, what did the BJP do with thousands of crores of electoral bonds, explain ‘chanda do, dhanda lo’, then only he can talk about others. I think he is not well, he should first take care of his health. We will help him.”

RJD’s Manoj Kumar Jha said: “Every morning, some uncle or aunty sends him a WhatsApp forward and he just posts it as is. Go ahead and get them arrested, the government is yours! Worry about Godda instead. You’re so desperate to catch the Prime Minister’s attention, it doesn’t work like that.”

Is there any truth to Dubey’s remarks?

During the Cold War, both the United States and the Soviet Union deployed vast intelligence operations across the developing world, and India, a newly independent democracy with growing strategic clout, became a theatre of this silent war.

Post-independence, India collaborated with the US to build its intelligence infrastructure. The CIA assisted Indian intelligence in monitoring China, especially after the annexation of Tibet in 1950. In 1959, it facilitated the Dalai Lama’s escape to India and later supported Indian defenses post the 1962 Sino-Indian War, according to a report in India Today.

Historian Paul McGarr has documented that the CIA provided financial support to the Congress Party and played a role in undermining the Communist government in Kerala in 1959.

The KGB also established its influence in India. Initial operations involved “honey traps” targeting Indian diplomats at the Indian Embassy in Moscow, giving the Soviets access to confidential communications.

The KGB reportedly financed electoral campaigns for Congress and Communist candidates. A close aide to prime minister Indira Gandhi, Lalit Narayan Mishra, was believed to have received Soviet funds.

The Telegraph had reported in 2005 about The Mitrokhin Archive II, which drew from notes smuggled by ex-KGB archivist Vasili Mitrokhin after his 1992 defection.

The book, read by The Telegraph, includes two key chapters on India, spotlighting the Congress party’s Soviet ties. While the chapters are dense with KGB jargon and codenames, author Christopher Andrew never accessed original KGB files...only what Mitrokhin claimed to have copied. Mitrokhin, who died in 2004, could not be independently questioned.