Union Minister Giriraj Singh on Monday, 9 November 2026, launched a sharp attack on senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi after she revealed in her forthcoming memoir that she had broken down in tears watching the Babri Masjid demolition in Ayodhya on 6 December 1992. Singh accused her of selective empathy, alleging that the Congress party has consistently pursued the politics of Muslim appeasement at the expense of Hindu concerns.

What Giriraj Singh Said

'She rightly said that she shed tears when the Babri Masjid was demolished and when the Batla House encounter took place. But when there was violence during the Ram temple movement and kar sevaks were killed, she did not shed tears for them. Perhaps that is because the issue concerns Hindus. How committed has Sonia Gandhi ever been to India?' Singh said.

He further questioned Sonia Gandhi's citizenship history, alleging she had lived in India for more than 12 years before acquiring citizenship. 'She was married and came to India; she was not minor. She was living in the country illegally for more than 12 years. What affection would she have for the country? I want to ask Sonia ji, you talk about vote theft. You were staying here by committing vote theft without taking citizenship, and you also cast votes,' he said.

The Trigger: Sonia Gandhi's Memoir

The remarks are a direct response to disclosures in Sonia Gandhi's upcoming memoir, 'Belonging: A Journey of Love', scheduled for publication on 10 November. In an interview ahead of the book's release, she recalled being moved to tears while watching the demolition of the Babri Masjid on live television. The memoir also reportedly revisits the Emergency of 1975 imposed by her mother-in-law and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Attack Extended to Samajwadi Party and Congress President

Singh also turned his fire on Samajwadi Party leader Sanatan Pandey, who had reportedly defended the firing on kar sevaks during the Ram temple movement under then Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav. 'This is the same politics of Muslim appeasement that the Congress pursued through its vote-bank politics. Mulayam Singh Yadav played the same game, as did Lalu Yadav in Bihar. Akhilesh Yadav is playing the same game today,' Singh said.

Separately, Singh criticised Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge over a controversy involving his Diwali greetings, alleging Kharge had not extended wishes to Hindus and followers of Sanatan Dharma but had referenced Eid. 'Kharge is merely a mouthpiece of Rahul Gandhi and the Gandhi family. He only says what is on Rahul Gandhi's mind,' Singh claimed. 'His remarks have exposed the Congress's politics of appeasement, particularly Muslim appeasement,' he added.

Background and Context

The Babri Masjid was demolished by kar sevaks in Ayodhya on 6 December 1992, triggering widespread communal violence across India. The site later became the subject of a prolonged legal battle that culminated in the Supreme Court's 2019 verdict awarding the disputed land for the construction of a Ram temple. The temple was inaugurated in January 2024. Singh's remarks come amid renewed political debate sparked by Sonia Gandhi's memoir, which is set to revisit some of the most contentious moments of post-Independence Indian political history. The Congress party had not publicly responded to Singh's allegations at the time of this report.