Rahul Gandhi Takes a Dig at Centre Over Marco Rubio’s India Visit, Targets Jaishankar Indirectly

Political debate has intensified ahead of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to India. Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi took a swipe at the central government over the arrangements for Rubio’s meetings in Mumbai. In a post on X on October 16, Gandhi wrote that Rubio had “summoned his employee to Mumbai” and alleged that officials in the Ministry of External Affairs were confused about the situation. He also asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to explain the matter, adding that he could do so himself if necessary.

Although Gandhi did not directly name External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in the post, his remarks were widely interpreted as referring to the planned meeting between the two foreign ministers. The Ministry of External Affairs subsequently confirmed that Jaishankar would hold talks with Rubio in Mumbai on October 20. Rubio’s India itinerary also includes a visit to Reliance Industries’ refinery complex in Jamnagar, Gujarat. The visit is expected to focus on India-US strategic ties, energy cooperation and regional and global developments. Gandhi’s comments have fuelled political discussion about diplomatic protocol and the Centre’s communication, while the government and the BJP had not immediately responded to the remarks in reports published at the time.