Overview
- Congress said the Leaders of the Opposition in both Houses, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, received no invitation to the Rashtrapati Bhavan banquet for Vladimir Putin.
- Shashi Tharoor confirmed he attended, stating he was invited in his capacity as chair of Parliament’s Standing Committee on External Affairs.
- Party colleagues, including Pawan Khera, criticised Tharoor for accepting the invitation and questioned the politics behind the guest list.
- Rahul Gandhi earlier alleged the Centre discourages foreign dignitaries from meeting the Opposition leader, calling it a break with tradition.
- Government-linked briefings rejected Gandhi’s claim and cited recent examples of LoP meetings with visiting leaders since mid‑2024.