A political storm erupted following a controversial statement by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi at the party’s annual legal conclave. The senior Congress leader claimed that former Union Minister Arun Jaitley had once pressured him into supporting the now-repealed farm laws—an accusation drawing sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Jaitley’s family.

“I remember when I was fighting the farm laws, Arun Jaitley ji was sent to me to threaten me. He told me “if you carry on opposing the govt, fighting the farm laws, we will have to act against you”. I looked at him and said “I don’t think you have an idea who you are talking to,” the Leader of the House in Lok Sabha said while speaking at the annual event in New Delhi.

Strongly refuting Rahul Gandhi’s claims, Arun Jaitley’s son, Rohan Jaitley, in an interview with India Today TV, called the Congress MP’s statement “completely false and devoid of facts.”

“My father passed away in 2019, whereas the farm laws were introduced in 2020,” Rohan told India Today TV. “This isn’t just factually incorrect but also highly irresponsible coming from someone who holds the position of Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha,” he added.

Rohan highlighted Rahul Gandhi’s history of making “fact-free allegations” against senior BJP leaders, citing his past remarks about the late Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.

Asked whether the family is considering legal action over the statement, Rohan said, “We will discuss this within the family.”

Meanwhile, the BJP has labelled Rahul Gandhi’s remark as “fake news” and accused the Congress leader of engaging in baseless political mudslinging.

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