Rahul’s Traitor Jibe on MP Bittu Stirs Row

New Delhi: In what has snowballed into a major controversy, Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday indulged in a verbal spat with Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu in the Parliament complex wherein he called the BJP leader a "traitor" and the minister hit back with the "desh ke dushman" (enemy of the nation) jibe. The BJP dubbed Gandhi's remark against Bittu a "slur on every Sikh" and demanded the Lok Sabha Speaker take action against the Congress leader.

Bittu, a three-time MP from Ludhiana and Anandpur Sahib, is serving as the Union minister of state for railways and food processing industries. Gandhi and Bittu traded barbs outside Parliament's Makar Dwar, where the LoP was standing in solidarity with the suspended Congress MPs, mostly from Punjab, who were protesting on the stairs at the main entrance which MPs take to enter the new Parliament building.

Gandhi spotted Bittu and referred to him as a “traitor”. Seeing them, Bittu said, "They (the suspended Congress MPs) are sitting here as if they have won a war."

Gandhi said, "The thing is, here is a traitor walking right by. Take a look at the face. How he looks." He put out his hand and, looking at Bittu, said, “Hello, brother. “Hello, my traitor friend.”

Bittu refused to shake hands and called the protesting members “enemies of the country”. Gandhi pointed to him and said, “You will be back” (in the Congress). Bittu was earlier in the Congress and had joined the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Speaking later to the media, Bittu said Gandhi behaved like a monarch to whom the country belonged and accused the Gandhi siblings (Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra) of using the Congress members to engage in theatrics while they sit behind to watch the ruckus.

The Union minister also said that when Gandhi extended his hand, he told the Congress leader that "he is the country's traitor" and "desh ke dushman", who talks against the Indian Army and the country every day.

"This Sardar will never join hands with the scion of the Gandhi family, who is a murderer of Sikhs and who demolished gurdwaras," Bittu said.

Attacking Gandhi in a post on X, petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri said, " Gandhi has addressed a parliamentarian and a respected Sikh leader, Bittu Ji, as a 'traitor'. It crosses all boundaries of civility, decency and dignity."

"It is entirely possible that he holds a deep grudge against Bittu Ji for choosing the policies of 'vikas' espoused by the Modi government over the directionless Congress. But that cannot ever justify such a slur against a proud Sikh whose grandfather was slain by terrorists…. Calling someone a 'traitor friend' means he has betrayed his country. While Gandhi may have many friends who are traitors, Mr Bittu is certainly not one of them. Calling a distinguished Sikh a traitor without any basis is a slur on the entire Sikh community,” Puri added.

The petroleum minister said that Gandhi should have known about the love for the land Sikhism teaches every Sikh and "the valour with which Sikhs serve in the armed forces in large numbers to protect the sovereignty of Mother India before calling a disciple of Guru Sahibs a traitor".

" Gandhi's comment is an insult to the contributions made by Sikhs in every sphere. It is a slur on our faith and our love for the motherland. It is a slur on the sacrifice of Bittu Ji's grandfather and former Punjab chief minister Sardar Beant Singh Ji," Puri said, adding, "Let us also not forget the desecration of the Golden Temple in 1984 with the same mindset."

The BJP also held a press conference by its Sikh leaders, including Puri, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Arvinder Singh Lovely and R.P. Singh, to condemn the Congress leader's remark.

Sirsa, a minister in the Delhi government, said that by calling Bittu "a proud Sikh, a traitor, the Congress leader insulted the entire Sikh community, which made big sacrifices for the country".

Slamming Gandhi for his remarks, Mr Lovely said the entire Sikh community is extremely anguished over the Congress leader calling Mr Bittu a traitor. "It is unfortunate," he added.

Coming to the defence of Gandhi, party MP and former Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi said that Bittu cannot be trusted, as he left the Congress when the party wanted him, and he is a traitor. “Anyone who can leave one party can leave the other house. The BJP is making a big deal of this,” he said.

Another Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla said, "We don’t need a certificate from Mr Bittu, who is acting on the RSS directions. The issue is not Bittu here; it is the India-US trade deal. Why have they made India a market?”

Amidst the raging controversy, BJP leaders and workers staged a protest near the Congress headquarters on Akbar Road over Gandhi's slur.

Leading the protest, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said that " Gandhi not just abused an individual but the entire Sikh community, which is the pride of the country."

The protesters gathered at Mansingh Road near the Congress headquarters, raising slogans "Sikh Sardar Hai, Rahul Gandhi Gaddar Hai", and demanded an apology from the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition.