Amidst ongoing political turbulence, a sharp exchange occurred between Rahul Gandhi and Ravneet Singh Bittu outside the Parliament on Wednesday, February 4, 2026. The confrontation saw Gandhi, a leading figure in the opposition, labeling Bittu, a Union Minister of State, as a "traitor," a swipe that elicited a strong retort. Bittu, now a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), responded by calling Gandhi a "desh ka dushman," which translates to "enemy of the nation".
The incident unfolded near the Makar Dwar of Parliament, where suspended opposition Members of Parliament were staging a protest. As Gandhi passed by, he pointed at Bittu and remarked, "Here is a traitor walking right by. Look at the face". Gandhi then offered to shake hands, saying, "Hello, brother, my traitor friend. Don't worry, you will come back (to Congress)". Bittu declined the handshake and fired back with the "desh ka dushman" jibe. The verbal sparring was captured on video and quickly spread across social media platforms.
This heated exchange reflects the deep-seated animosity stemming from Bittu's defection from the Indian National Congress to the BJP in March 2024. Bittu, a prominent face in Punjab politics and grandson of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, had previously represented the Ludhiana constituency in the Lok Sabha. He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Anandpur Sahib in 2009 and re-elected from Ludhiana in 2014 and 2019. Following his switch to the BJP, he was nominated to contest from Ludhiana against Congress' candidate Amarinder Singh Raja Warring. He is currently serving as the Minister of State for Railways and as the Minister of State for Food Processing Industries in the Third Modi ministry. He has been a MP of Rajya Sabha representing Rajasthan since August 2024.
The "traitor" remark alludes to Bittu's departure from the Congress party, a move perceived by some as a betrayal of his former political allegiance. Gandhi's additional comment, "Don't worry, you will come back," suggests a belief that Bittu's political shift is temporary and that he may eventually return to the Congress fold.
The backdrop to this confrontation is the suspension of eight opposition MPs for what has been described as "unruly behavior". The suspensions are linked to disruptions in Parliament related to Rahul Gandhi's statements concerning the India-China border situation. This suspension occurred after Rahul Gandhi was disallowed for the second day from quoting an article that cited an unpublished memoir of a former Army chief on the 2020 India-China conflict. These tensions have contributed to a charged atmosphere in Parliament, exacerbating the friction between the ruling party and the opposition.
The verbal clash between Gandhi and Bittu underscores the increasingly polarized political landscape in India. The use of strong terms like "traitor" and "enemy of the nation" highlights the personal and ideological divides that characterize contemporary Indian politics.