A political controversy has erupted ahead of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to India. In the wake of this visit, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's remarks targeting the central government and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar are causing a huge uproar. He is being criticized for indirectly addressing the External Affairs Minister as 'Rubio's staff'.

What really happened?

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit India next week. As part of this visit, he will visit the Reliance unit in Jamnagar, Gujarat. Later, he will meet industrialists and top government officials in Mumbai. US Ambassador Sergio Gore revealed that External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will also participate in these meetings.

In this context, Rahul Gandhi reacted on the 'X' platform and took a sarcastic dig at the central government. "Rubio has ordered his staff to come to Mumbai. Modi ji... your officials in the Ministry of External Affairs are in a state of confusion. Explain to them...! Or do you want me to explain...!" he said in his post.

Controversial remarks

Although Rahul Gandhi did not directly mention Jaishankar's name anywhere in his post, political analysts believe that he indirectly made these remarks targeting the External Affairs Minister by saying "Rubio has ordered his staff to come". There are criticisms that it is inappropriate to describe the Foreign Minister of one country as the 'staff' of the Foreign Minister of another country and that this is a denigration of diplomatic status. They believe that by stating that the Foreign Ministry officials are in a state of confusion, he tried to highlight the lack of coordination in the government.

There is a possibility of a meeting between Rubio and Jaishankar to discuss key issues such as bilateral strategic partnership and mutual cooperation in regional development. Sources believe that Rahul's comments ahead of such a crucial visit have led to unnecessary controversy. These comments are likely to draw a strong response from BJP leaders as well.