New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, the face of the party, addressed only five rallies in Jharkhand that recently went to elections. He was rarely seen at the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act that have rocked the country. The Wayanad MP was also not present in Parliament during the first week of the Winter Session that ended on 25 November.
Rahul Gandhi, who stepped down as the Congress president earlier this year after his party lost the Lok Sabha elections, has often remained absent from the country’s political scene that rarely sees a dull day these days.
In the last four years since 2015, according to the Modi government, Rahul has travelled abroad at least 247 times — an average 62 trips in a year, which amounts to five a month.
The data was provided by Home Minister Amit Shah last month, when he was discussing the Special Protection Group (SPG) Bill in the Lok Sabha.
Shah had said the data was based on the number of times Rahul had travelled without informing the SPG. This, according to the home minister, was a violation of SPG norms.
Shah added that since 2015, Rahul has travelled 1,892 times in India and 247 times abroad without informing the SPG.
Shah, however, made no mention of the number of times that the former Congress president travelled, both within the country and abroad, after informing the SPG.
The home minister also said other members of the Gandhi family, interim Congress president Sonia Gandhi and daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, also flouted SPG norms.
“Sonia Gandhiji has travelled more than 50 times without giving prior information since 2015. Of these, 24 were foreign visits,” Shah said.
For Priyanka, Shah said she had taken 99 foreign trips since 1991, of which she did not seek SPG cover on 78 such tours.
Also read: Congress on winning side in Jharkhand but questions on relevance of Gandhis remain
Flak for Rahul over foreign trips
Rahul has repeatedly come under fire for his foreign trips.
When the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act picked up across the country, the opposition leader was missing as he was in South Korea for an event. The South Korea sojourn also meant that he missed the last leg of the Jharkhand election campaign, leaving his sister Priyanka Gandhi to fill in at a rally in Pakur.
His trips have also hurt the party. In October, as the Congress prepared to launch a massive agitation against the Modi government on the state of the economy, the former party chief wasn’t in the country.
He only returned a couple of weeks later to campaign in Haryana and Maharashtra leaving yet again once the electioneering came to an end.
Also read: It’s Rahul Gandhi again — Congress all set to bring him back as party chief
Is this a joke or something? Either the Home Minister or The Print has got it wrong. There are only 1460 days in 4 years (and 1825 in 5 years). And it is being claimed that Rahul Gandhi travelled 1892 + 247 = 2139 times since 2015?!!! And these are the times when he is supposed to have travelled without informing the SPG. If other occasions are also taken into account, god knows what that number is supposed to be! Doesn’t logic or even basic Maths count at all?! Please be more responsible with your reporting!
Its 247 times in those 4-5 years dear
No, they are claiming that he travelled 1892 times in India and 247 times abroad in the last 4 years! That exceeds the number of days in 4 years!
You are right. The numbers dont add up!
Abe pagal h kya….delhi to Kolkata 2hrs lagta h …to hum din 12 baar jaaa sakte h…or tere logic se Rahul Gandhi kya ek din me travel krta h uska matlab 24 hrs ho gaya kya…days gin wa raha h gadha!!
Election me ek din 3 baar tak raily hoti h to wo count nahi hoga kya ??
Akola district Maharashtra naigaon ward number 1 akola district ke anek nagarsevak yahan per Koi vikas ka karya nahin karte inke upar CBI enquiry honi chahie itni hi hamari request hai yahan per Koi nahin sunta Koi complaint nahin karta
I really don’t get why the sudden focus on his foreign visits after all the spg drama and now currently he is in india,seems like trying to divert people again by creating negativity about him….good job guys,also remember tomorrow your kids are going to live in this country,every time you try to divert issues and protect a certain fringe remember the next generations which will have to live in a bigoted society thanks to people fueling it like you guys
DOES HE GO ABROAD TO MEET A PARAMOUR?
It is not really anyonones business, expect it’s a pity that he cannot bring his paramour to India due the narrow minded attitudes of our people.
We are one of the most intolerant people in the world
Intolerance has resulted in India missing out on a throughly decent politician during times of crises.
But I can imagine there will be a large number of people who will stand by him. And quite rightly so.
Zalim Hindustan…na pappu ko banaye PM, na karne de khulam khulla mohabbat. Zahid bhai kuch raasta nikaliye na.
Lol you created an account with that name to make a comment like this,wow people like you are fastly degressing to become apes
is that Pappu’s PR department suddenly in overdrive?? Filthy rich grandfather…who wants an incompetent part-timer to lead the country? Perhaps you or else you would lose your job as the head of his PR department. What work has he done to deserve that bungalow as a perk? Loser couldn’t even save his traditional constituency.
I don’t think so,if he had to do so,I believe he is not a conceited man to do it….he always believed in integrity more than political gains just like how he didn’t mind to say about savarkar despite knowing sivasena would be angry
Zahedji, I wonder what your abbajan will say if you bought your paramour home?
247 journeys in 4 years!
At average 2 lakhs per journey, cost will come to Rs 5 Crs
What is the source of these funds?
Well if you think practically his great great grandfather himself was a filthy rich man unlike you….5cr shouldn’t be a problem and he has no kids to save any for so he is enjoying his life….i wonder where chaiwala gets his 2cr suit and 2 lakh glasses from,who pays for it,his great great grandfather wasn’t rich
But in his election affidavit he declared he has only Rs. 15.1 crore . That must have run out by now, since he is unemployed.
The idiocies we indian have, preaching others without any remorse to our deeds.
That’s Priyanka Gandhi and Robert Vadra in the picture, not Sonia Gandhi. Kindly avoid such blatant errors, which leaves a question about the efficiency of editorial team and the people involved in quality check.