Rahul Gandhi dares PM Modi to open debate on India-US deal, Adani case and Epstein row
New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday renewed his challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a public debate, asking him to choose any venue or platform for a face-to-face discussion. He said the discussion should cover several issues including the India-US deal, the Adani case and allegations of foreign connections.
The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha also questioned the BJP’s repeated accusations that the Opposition was anti-national and had links with foreign forces. He asked the Prime Minister why he had not filed a defamation case against him over his claims.
Gandhi’s latest challenge came a day after he accused Modi of becoming and remaining Prime Minister with the support of foreign forces, following the latter’s criticism of the Opposition.
In a video message shared on X, Gandhi said 24 hours had passed since he first challenged the Prime Minister and urged him to agree to the debate.
“You say the opposition is anti-national. Choose any stage, any venue, and debate me on this – Who is anti-national? Who has connections with foreign forces? And what is the nature of those connections? Let’s do this as soon as possible. Daro mat (Don’t be scared)!,” he said.
24 घंटे हो गए मोदी जी। मैंने आपको चैलेंज दिया है।
आप कहते हो कि opposition देशद्रोही है। किसी भी स्टेज पे आप जगह चुनिए, डिबेट कीजिए मेरे साथ।
देशद्रोही कौन है? विदेशी फोर्सेस का कनेक्शन किसका है? और किस प्रकार का कनेक्शन है? जल्दी से जल्दी कीजिए, डरिए मत।
दोनों मिलेंगे, मीडिया होगी, देश के युवा होंगे, टेबल होगी, एक साइड आप बैठोगे, एक साइड मैं बैठूंगा। जिसको आप जज बनाना चाहते हो, बना दो। मोहन भागवत जी को बिठा दो, चलो। और फिर डिबेट करते हैं।
सवाल उठेंगे फाइनेंशियल सिस्टम पर, फाइनेंशियल स्ट्रक्चर पर, US डील कैसे हुई, क्यों हुई, इतनी जल्दी क्यों हुई, सिर्फ आपने क्यों की, कैबिनेट को क्यों नहीं बताया, अडानी का केस बंद क्यों हुआ, Epstein – ऐसी बहुत सारी चीजें हैं जिसपे खुलकर डिस्कशन होगा।
आ जाइए, डरिए मत।
दूध का दूध, पानी का पानी कीजिए।आप एलिगेशन लगाते हैं ना मेरे ऊपर, आ जाइए, सब साफ हो जाएगा।
बाकी चीजों पे आपने defamation केस लगा रखा है, शायद 45 defamation केस मेरे ऊपर हैं।
मगर इस डिबेट मामले पे, foreign कनेक्शन पे आप defamation नहीं लगा रहे हो। लगाइए ना, वहाँ भी डिस्कस करेंगे, खुल के। ये सब डिस्कस करते हैं, आइए।
हैप्पी दिवाली, मोदी जी।
It’s been 24 hours since I challenged you, Modi ji.
You say the Opposition is anti-national. Choose any stage, any venue, and debate me on this – Who is anti-national? Who has connections with foreign forces? And what is the nature of those connections?
Let’s do this as soon as possible. Daro mat!
We’ll both be there. The media will be there. The youth of this country will be there. There will be a table. You’ll sit on one side, I’ll sit on the other. You can appoint whoever you want as the judge. You can even make Mohan Bhagwat ji the judge.
There will be questions about the financial system, the financial structure, how the US deal happened, why it happened and why so quickly, why you made the deal alone and didn’t inform the Cabinet, why the Adani case was closed, Epstein – and many other issues. We’ll discuss all of them openly.
Let the truth come out. Let everything be crystal clear.
You make allegations against me, don’t you? Come forward. Everything will become clear.
You’ve filed defamation cases against me over other matters. I think there are around 45 defamation cases against me.
But on this issue of the debate, on the question of foreign connections, you haven’t filed a defamation case. Go ahead, file one. We’ll discuss that openly too.
Happy Diwali, Modi ji.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) November 3, 2026
Rahul Gandhi suggests Mohan Bhagwat as debate judge
Gandhi proposed that both leaders sit across a table in front of the media and the country’s youth. He also said Modi could choose anyone to act as the judge, suggesting RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat as one option.
The Congress MP listed several issues he wanted to discuss, including how the India-US deal was negotiated, why it was allegedly rushed and why the Prime Minister handled it without informing the Cabinet. He also questioned why the Adani case was closed and referred to the Epstein controversy.
“Let the truth come out. Let everything be crystal clear. You make allegations against me, don’t you? Come forward. Everything will become clear,” he said.
Gandhi further challenged Modi to file a defamation case over his allegations of foreign connections. He said around 45 defamation cases had already been filed against him on other matters.
Kiren Rijiju dismisses Rahul Gandhi’s challenge
In a separate post on X, Gandhi asked people whether they wanted to see an open debate between him and the Prime Minister. He also tagged Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, asking them to persuade Modi to accept the challenge.
Earlier, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju had dismissed Gandhi’s proposal, saying high-level debates should take place between mature people and also accused the Congress leader of pushing the agenda of India’s enemies.
The exchange follows Modi’s recent remarks in Gujarat, where he accused certain forces of trying to destabilise and divide the country through misinformation and alleged links with anti-India elements abroad. He had also called the Opposition an “Avrodh Paksh” (obstructionist faction) instead of a “Virodh Paksh” (opposition).
The latest exchange has added to the political face-off between the BJP and Congress over national security, foreign connections and the role of the Opposition.