Hyderabad/New Delhi:
The BJP on Sunday accused Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi of letting foreign political representatives interfere in India’s domestic politics, basing its charge on an Italian delegate’s raising and translation of a slogan at the Bharat Summit in Hyderabad in Congress-ruled Telangana on Saturday.
Italian leader Giacomo Filibeck, secretary-general of the Party of European Socialists (PES), raised the Opposition’s slogan “Vote chor, gaddi chhod”, translating it to “Vote thief, leave your seat” — a line that Rahul Gandhi has been using to allege manipulation by the BJP-led government in collusion with the Election Commission. Rahul Gandhi was seen laughing as he did so. The Telangana government hosted the summit as a conclave of the Congress’s fraternal parties and progressive intellectuals from around the world.
Reacting, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju posted on X: “Have you ever seen anyone laughing when India is insulted by a foreigner? I’m not asking about which Indian goes abroad to insult India.”
VIDEO | Hyderabad: At the Bharat Summit, Secretary General of the Party of European Socialists, Giacomo Filibeck said, “Rahul Gandhi has defended a simple principle on which every democracy rests; ‘one person, one vote’. His campaign for clean and transparent voter rolls and the thousands who marched with him to Ramlila Maidan just two weeks ago remind us that democracy is not given. It is defended by people willing to stand up for it. ‘Vote Chor Gaddi Chhod’. The Congress Party built the democratic foundation of modern India.” (Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/bIyFWTfmBd)
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 15, 2026
Home Minister Amit Shah, at a rally in Maharashtra, said the Congress party was “venting the frustration” of losing three consecutive Lok Sabha elections, and mentioned the Hyderabad summit.
“[Congress] invited propagators of leftist ideology from across the country and abroad, and the ‘prince’ of the Congress also went there. They named it ‘Bharat Summit’, yet Rahul Gandhi ji worked to defame India across the entire world by expressing anti-India views at an international conference.” He also accused Rahul Gandhi of making foreign trips where he “defames India on international platforms”.
Italy A Sticking Point For BJP
Union Minister of State for Home, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, who is from Telangana, called the Hyderabad event an “Anti-Bharat Summit”.
“Congress once tried to make an Italian national the Prime Minister of India. Now, at its Anti-Bharat Summit, an Italian political leader is commenting on India’s internal affairs!” he added.
The BJP has long attacked the Congress over the Italian origins of Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi’s mother. After the Congress-led alliance won the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, she declined the prime minister’s post and Manmohan Singh took it.
Bandi Sanjay Kumar attacked the state government too. “Congress govt under [Chief Minister] Revanth Reddy gave foreign political representatives the stage to interfere in our domestic politics & Rahul Gandhi is shamelessly laughing,” he wrote.
This is an Anti-Bharat Summit & here is the proof.! Congress once tried to make an Italian national the Prime Minister of India. Now, at its Anti-Bharat Summit, an Italian political leader is commenting on India’s internal affairs! Congress govt under Revanth Reddy gave foreign political representatives the stage to interfere in our domestic politics & Rahul Gandhi is shamelessly laughing. This is his hatred towards our country India’s democracy belongs to 140 crore Indians. Congress has no mandate to turn a summit on Indian soil into a platform for foreign political interference.
— Bandi Sanjay Kumar (@bandisanjay_bjp) November 14, 2026
Telangana BJP chief N Ramchander Rao posted in Telugu: “Isn’t it treason to let foreign leaders mock our country’s democracy and proudly applaud their remarks?”
Introspect, Says Congress
The Congress defended the slogan and the fact that a foreigner used it.
“Those sitting on the throne of loot and corruption, particularly the Modi government and the BJP, have no right to speak about corruption,” Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said in Delhi. Asked about the slogan, he said: “If a foreigner comes and says this, there is a need for introspection.”
Congress spokesperson Girija Shetkar posted on X, “Was the slogan ‘Abki baar Trump sarkar’ not a comment on another country’s internal affairs?” referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2019 “Howdy Modi” event in Houston, where he backed Trump ahead of the presidential election in the US.
Delhi: On BJP’s criticism of Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi’s remarks at the Bharat Summit, Congress MP Pramod Tiwari says, “I only want to say that those sitting on the throne of loot and corruption, particularly the Modi government and the BJP, have no right to speak about corruption…” On an Italian leader’s ‘Vote chor, gaddi chhod’ slogan at Bharat Summit, he says, “If a foreigner comes and says this, there is a need for introspection…”
— IANS (@ians_india) November 15, 2026
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut made an Italy reference of his own while attacking PM Modi. “If Modi can offer Melody chocolates to the Italian Prime Minister, then an Italian politician can come here and speak about this country,” he said, referring to PM Modi giving Italian leader Giorgia Meloni a packet of Melody toffees during his visit to Rome in May.
What Filibeck Said Further
At the summit, Filibeck praised the protests against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. “Students, young people, and Opposition parties have taken to the streets, demanding education reform and accountability for the millions of names that have been removed from the electoral rolls…. At the heart of that fight stands the Indian National Congress and the leadership of Rahul Gandhi,” he said, before ending with the “vote chori” slogan.
Rahul Gandhi opened his speech by mentioning that several foreign delegates were allegedly refused entry into India despite holding visas for the event. “I’d also like to apologise to many of the delegates and leaders who were scheduled to come but were not allowed to come by the Government of India,” he said. He repeated his “vote chori” allegation.
(Inputs from PTI, ANI, IANS)
