New Delhi: Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi Saturday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he appears to be suffering “memory loss” like the “former President” of the United States of America.
While Gandhi did not take any names, it was apparent that he was referring to Joe Biden, the outgoing US president, who will continue in his post till the transfer of power to the incoming Republican administration under President-elect Donald Trump in January.
“My sister was telling me that she listened to (PM) Modi’s speech. She said that these days Modi ji is essentially repeating whatever we say. Perhaps he has suffered memory loss. Like the former President of America. He used to forget things and had to be reminded from behind about what to say, and what not to,” Gandhi said, addressing a rally in poll-bound Maharashtra’s Amravati.
The Congress MP from Rae Bareli, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, referred to the incident of Biden mistakenly referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Russian President Vladimir Putin at the NATO summit in Washington in July.
“Ukrainian President had come there, and he (former US president) said Russian President Putin had come. People had to correct him. He had memory loss. Likewise, our PM is having memory loss. I accused the BJP of attacking the Constitution, and the PM puts the blame on me,” Gandhi said.
He added, “I declare in every meeting that we will bring down the 50 percent cap on reservations. I said so in Lok Sabha in front of Modi. And he accuses me of being against reservations. He has memory loss. In the next meeting he might say that I am against caste census, a demand that I also made in front of him.”
Biden’s health was under intense scrutiny as he launched his bid for another term in office. His frequent gaffes and a disastrous performance against Trump in a debate in the race for the White House eventually led to him stepping aside as the Democratic party’s candidate.
Vice President Kamala Harris replaced Biden as the Democratic Party’s nominee in the elections, held on 5 November, in which Trump emerged as the winner. On 7 November, Gandhi wrote to Harris, congratulating her on her “spirited” Presidential campaign.
“Under the Biden administration, India and the United States have deepened cooperation on issues of global importance,” Gandhi wrote.
In a separate letter to Trump, he congratulated the President-elect on his victory, adding that under the new administration, India and the US will “further deepen cooperation in areas of mutual interest”.
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