The Bharatiya Janata Party hit back at Rahul Gandhi on Friday, branding the Leader of the Opposition a "habitual liar" addicted to political hit-and-run tactics after he claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally ordered his mobile phone tapped.
No proof accompanied the explosive charge. Speaking during an interactive session on Instagram, Gandhi claimed files substantiating accusations against the Prime Minister remained locked inside his device—and alleged state intelligence services were monitoring the handset in real time.
Gandhi threw down an open gauntlet to the Prime Minister, demanding an unscripted, head-to-head confrontation across a single table rather than scripted parliamentary speeches.
Ravaged by repeated microphone cuts in the Lok Sabha, the Congress leader listed several flashpoint topics the Treasury benches allegedly blocked from floor debate, spanning border tensions with China and contentious farm legislation to former Army Chief Gen. M.M. Naravane's unpublished memoirs and the Jeffrey Epstein disclosures.
I want a one-on-one debate. I don't want a debate entailing long speeches. I want that Narendra Modi makes allegations against me and I do the same to him. He can come; there will be a table, on one side there will be Narendra Modi ji and on the other side, it will be me.
Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha
Pressed by a viewer on where his documentation was kept, Gandhi pointed directly at his mobile device, claiming the Prime Minister was actively intercepting his communications to intercept the material.
BJP national spokesperson Tuhin Sinha tore into Gandhi's surveillance narrative during a press briefing on Friday afternoon, pointing out a glaring contradiction in the opposition leader's claims.
Either senior bureaucrats were secretly leaking government files to the Congress leader, Sinha argued, or government agencies were monitoring his digital movements—both could not stand simultaneously.
Sinha highlighted that Gandhi had previously assured reporters that top civil servants routinely slip him sensitive internal dossiers from inside the central ministries.
Rahul Gandhi believes in hit-and-run politics. He thinks he can make an absurd allegation one day, does not feel obligated to provide evidence in support of it, and within three days, when he is unable to prove his allegation, he deflects to another issue. Either Rahul Gandhi's first allegation was true or his second allegation is true. But the point is that Rahul Gandhi is a habitual liar.
Tuhin Sinha, BJP National Spokesperson
Sinha also pointed to the opposition delegation's recent meeting with President Droupadi Murmu over alleged "vote theft," noting that Gandhi had walked into Rashtrapati Bhavan without submitting a single verified data sheet or audit trail to corroborate his charges.
| Controversy Parameter | Rahul Gandhi's Assertion | BJP Official Rebuttal |
|---|---|---|
| Surveillance Allegation | Handset tapped directly under PM directives | Baseless fabrication; deflecting scrutiny |
| Leaks & Intelligence | Senior bureaucrats feeding insider evidence | Contradicts claims of active device surveillance |
| Vote Theft Claims | Systematic electoral manipulation raised to President | Zero verifiable evidence filed with authorities |
| Debate Challenge | Demands 1-on-1 table debate with Narendra Modi | Labelled hit-and-run media grandstanding |
With Parliament scheduled to reconvene, the BJP indicated its floor managers will demand Gandhi either table concrete forensic records of the purported phone surveillance or tender an unconditional apology to the House.