A remark made in Patna has detonated into a full-scale political row — and Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is not holding back. On Monday, 26 October 2026, Singh took to X to express that he was 'stunned and deeply hurt' by a comment made by Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's late father, demanding an apology and calling out what he described as the Congress party's accelerating moral and ideological decline.

What Rajnath Singh Said — and Why It Stings

In a lengthy, sharply-worded post in Hindi, Singh did not merely object to the remark — he dissected who made it. 'यह टिप्पणी कांग्रेस के किसी सामान्य कार्यकर्ता या किसी युवा नेता ने नहीं की है' ('This comment was not made by an ordinary Congress worker or a young leader'), he wrote, underlining that the statement came from the national president of a party that describes itself as India's oldest political organisation. The weight of that office, Singh argued, demands greater gravity, restraint, dignity, and responsible conduct in public life.

Singh went further, accusing Congress of compounding the offence by choosing to justify Kharge's words rather than express regret. 'Instead of accepting the mistake and expressing remorse, Congress is busy defending the statement,' he said — a charge that he framed as revealing not just poor judgment but an institutional culture of impunity.

A Pattern Singh Says Has Now Reached the Top

The Defence Minister placed the episode in a longer lineage of what he called 'degraded politics.' He recalled that Congress leaders had for years mocked Prime Minister Modi's modest family background and used 'indecent language' about the Prime Minister's mother. Now, he said, that same 'level-less politics' had migrated to the party's highest leadership — a threshold he described as a new low.

'Converting ideological opposition into personal insult, taking political disagreement to the level of abusive language, and targeting the Prime Minister's family reflects Congress's desperation and ideological bankruptcy,' Singh wrote. He was explicit that the attack was not merely on one individual: it was, in his framing, an assault on the dignity of Indian democracy itself.

The Line Singh Drew — and the Warning He Issued

Singh drew a sharp distinction between legitimate political opposition and personal transgression. 'Oppose in a democracy, question policies, criticise the government — but do not violate personal limits,' he said. He closed with a dual message: a warning to Congress that 'in a democracy, the public keeps account of everything and gives an answer when the time comes,' and a direct assurance that Prime Minister Modi would be neither rattled nor deflected from his commitment to public service by such remarks.

The BJP-Congress fault line over political decorum is not new, but the targeting of a sitting Prime Minister's deceased parent gives this round unusual sharpness. Whether Congress responds with a retraction or doubles down will define the next move in a confrontation that is already far beyond the policy arena.