Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on 1 November 2026 led a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) march through Hari Nagar in New Delhi, framing the Congress party's simultaneous rally at Ramlila Maidan as an affront to Sikh sentiment on the anniversary of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. The counter-march drew Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Delhi BJP President Harsh Malhotra, and was accompanied by sharp political attacks on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

The Grievance: A Rally on a Day of Mourning

BJP leaders accused the Congress of deliberately scheduling its Ramlila Maidan mobilisation on 1 November — the date on which, in 1984, large-scale violence against the Sikh community erupted on the streets of Delhi following the assassination of then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The party argued that the choice of date reflected insensitivity toward a community still seeking accountability for the killings of thousands of Sikhs.

Harsh Malhotra said the Congress had 'hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community by holding a rally on November 1 in the middle of the community's mourning over the massacre of thousands of Sikhs in the 1984 riots.' The charge placed the Congress on the defensive at a moment when the party was seeking to project political momentum.

What Delhi CM Rekha Gupta Said on X

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta posted directly on social media platform X, targeting Rahul Gandhi by name. 'Rahul Gandhi, Congress, and the INDI alliance, who stage platforms of anarchy in the name of democracy — the country is witnessing their true colours. The country has not forgotten the date of November 1. On this very day in 1984, the horrific chapter of the Sikh massacre was being written on the streets of Delhi,' she wrote.

In a second post, Gupta accused Gandhi of a pattern she described as spreading misinformation, defaming electoral outcomes, and then 'recovering the cost of your political frustration from the country and the people of Delhi.' She added: 'Rahul Gandhi, remember: the revenge for defeat from the people's mandate cannot be taken from the country, nor can the cost of your political failures be recovered from the people of Delhi.'

BJP Claims Rally Turnout Fell Far Short

Delhi BJP Spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said the Congress had spent 15 days claiming it would draw lakhs to Ramlila Maidan, but alleged the ground reality contradicted those projections. He said the BJP had predicted on Saturday morning itself that Gandhi would not be able to mobilise even 25,000 people, let alone the claimed 10 lakh, and that Sunday's attendance had borne out that assessment. 'The empty Ramlila Maidan has proven our assessment correct,' Kapoor said.

Malhotra added that opposition party workers had themselves boycotted the 'Chalo Ramlila Maidan' campaign, and that the 'Vote Chor, Gaddi Chhod' slogan launched by an alliance including the Congress, Communist parties, the Samajwadi Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), and leaders such as Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan had been 'completely rejected' by the public.

Context: A Recurring Political Flashpoint

The 1984 anti-Sikh riots remain one of the most politically charged episodes in modern Indian history, and have repeatedly been invoked by the BJP to challenge the Congress's claim to secular and minority-inclusive credentials. This is not the first time the BJP has used the November 1 anniversary to mount political pressure — the date has served as a recurring trigger for counter-mobilisation against Congress events in Delhi.

Kapoor described Sunday's rally as the Congress party's 'fifth attempt in 10 years to politically relaunch Rahul Gandhi,' arguing that each such effort had failed. The BJP's counter-march strategy — pairing physical mobilisation with coordinated social media messaging — reflects the party's increasingly integrated approach to both street politics and online narratives ahead of future electoral cycles in Delhi.

What Comes Next

The BJP has demanded a public apology from the Congress to the Sikh community and to Delhi's trading community, which Malhotra claimed had been made anxious by the prospect of large-scale disruption ahead of Sunday's rally. Whether the Congress responds to those demands — or presses ahead with the political framing of its Ramlila campaign — will shape the next phase of this confrontation in the capital.