PM Modi said that the Nehru-Gandhi family had become a liability and that internal democracy was being stifled to keep one individual in the spotlight.
BY PC Bureau
New Delhi, October 22, 2026: Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a blistering attack on the Congress at the NDTV World Summit on Thursday, accusing the opposition party of prioritising political survival over national interests and seeking to create chaos at a time when the world is grappling with a changing global order.
Without naming Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi directly, Modi mocked the Congress’s repeated attempts to establish its leader politically, comparing them to unsuccessful rocket launches. He quipped that even Sriharikota, India’s space launch centre, did not witness as many launches in a year as the Congress attempted to launch its leader.
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The party was free to undermine itself, Modi said, but it should not jeopardise India’s achievements and development to shield one family from the consequences of political failure. Using a metaphor of sour grapes, he remarked that the Congress was now trying to destroy the very vine because it could not enjoy its fruits.
Modi calls Congress Parasite
Modi then labelled the Congress a “parasite”, accusing it of obstructing the success of others rather than strengthening itself. He argued that the Nehru-Gandhi family had become a liability for the party and claimed that even senior Congress leaders privately recognised the problem.
The Prime Minister also accused the Congress leadership of stifling internal democracy in Parliament to keep the spotlight focused on one individual. According to him, this approach denied talented younger MPs opportunities to speak and emerge as independent political voices.
जो जंगलों में विनाश करते थे, वो अब कांग्रेस में घुसकर देश का सर्वनाश करने पर तुले हुए हैं।
-आदरणीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री नरेंद्र मोदी जी
@narendramodi
@BJP4India @BJP4UP https://t.co/4btkXIaRWp— Pankaj Chaudhary (@mppchaudhary) October 22, 2026
In one of his sharpest attacks, Modi alleged that “dimagi Naxals” had gained control of the Congress, leaving the party incapable of independent thought. He drew a comparison between those who, he claimed, once spread destruction in villages and their alleged presence within the opposition party, accusing them of being willing to damage the country.
Modi further charged that, instead of projecting India’s achievements internationally amid global uncertainty, such elements travelled abroad to discredit the country and seek foreign intervention.
The remarks came during the Prime Minister’s keynote address on the opening day of the NDTV World Summit, where he also discussed India’s growing international standing and the emergence of a new global order.
His speech combined criticism of the Congress’s leadership and internal functioning with a broader political argument that the opposition was placing the interests of one family above those of the country. The allegations and characterisations were part of Modi’s political attack on the Congress.
