On 26th November 2008, 10 terrorists from Pakistan had held the country to ransom for 4 long, un-ending days. Shooting and bombing several locations in the financial capital of India, Mumbai, the terrorists left a trail of blood. Between 26/11 and 29th November 2008, at least 174 people were killed (the numbers are suspected to be far more) and 300 people were injured. While the country remembers 26/11 in horror and mourns the trail of dead bodies, Rahul Gandhi has maintained a stoic silence.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembered the victims of the carnage while addressing both Houses of Parliament on Constitution Day, he said that while November 26 is a happy occasion as India celebrates Constitution Day, it is also a reminder of the Mumbai terror attacks of November 26, 2008. “I pay tributes to those killed in the Mumbai terror attacks,” he said.
In fact, even the Congress party Twitter handle tweeted remembering the terror attack. Congress tweeted, “Today as we pay our respects to the victims & martyrs of the deadly Mumbai attack on 26th November 2008, we remember the strength & unity of our people that helped our nation get through this difficult period. It is a true testament to what we can achieve when we come together”.
However, Rahul Gandhi, the part-time politician and the crowned prince of the Congress party has maintained silence. He is yet to make any statement too the media or on his Twitter handle, which is otherwise rather active, remembering the carnage that was unleashed by Pakistan or the victims that fell to the terror.
The last tweet from Rahul Gandhi’s Twitter handle was at 10:40 AM where he wished the nation on Constitution Day.
सभी देशवासियों को संविधान दिवस की हार्दिक शुभकामनाएं।
संविधान दिवस पर हम अपने संविधान सभा के महान नेताओ के बहुमूल्य योगदान को नमन करते हैं।
हमें हमारे संविधान पर गर्व है, इसमें निहित मूल्यों को बचाये रखने के लिए हम अपनी वचनबद्धता दोहराते हैं।
#ConstitutionofIndia pic.twitter.com/78ya2QXe8L
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) November 26, 2019
So while his Twitter account is active, not one tweet or statement has been made by the part-time politician.
Rahul Gandhi’s conduct, however insensitive, is not surprising. While citizens of India were being slaughtered by Pakistani terrorists, Rahul Gandhi was partying.
Rahul Gandhi was partying in the outskirts of Delhi at the ‘sangeet’ for the wedding of Samir Sharma, his childhood friend. They were at a sprawling farmhouse at Radhey Mohan Chowk.
Read: Tales of betrayal and Congress’ insensitivity as the 26/11 terror attack left 166 dead
According to India Today’s 2008 article, “Saturday night’s ‘sangeet’ was a lavish affair. It was hosted by Leena Musafir, sister of the woman with whom Samir is getting married, and her husband Inder. The party was attended by over 800 guests, including regulars at Page 3 dos. “When everyone is cancelling parties or just keeping them low-key, Rahul Gandhi had no business to be celebrating. His action makes us lose faith in future leaders,” said Ajay Bahl, a leading corporate lawyer who was trapped in the thick of the action on 26/11 at The Oberoi, Mumbai, but managed to escape with the help of the hotel staff. The Gandhis, including Sonia Gandhi’s mother Paola Maino, were present in strength at the 2004 wedding of Samir’s sister, Sarika, who is married to actor turned- TV producer Rahul Bhatt. Sarika and Rahul now manage a television production house”.
With the kind of insensitivity that Rahul Gandhi displayed even as the 26/11 siege was on-going, it is not surprising that 11 years on, he would pretend like the carnage did not even take place. That though he aspires to be a serious leader, he doesn’t really care about extending a word of support to the country while they remember the horror that Pakistan unleashed.
