Congress’ Rahul Gandhi calls PM Modi’s presence in stadium ‘unlucky’, blames him for World Cup loss

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday (Nov 21) took potshots at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Indian cricket team’s crushing defeat against Australia in the recently concluded World Cup final.

While addressing a rally in poll-bound Rajasthan state’s Jalore city, Rahul Gandhi said that had Modi not attended the match, the Indian team would have won the World Cup.

Then someone from the crowd shouted ‘panauti’ (a Hindi word for a person who brings bad luck or omen).

To which Gandhi responded, “Yeah…panauti, panauti… Our boys were easily going to win the World Cup but the ‘bad omen’ made us lose. The media won’t point this out but people know.”

Though the Congress MP did not directly call Modi a ‘bad omen’, he suggested that his presence in the Ahmedabad stadium, which is named after the Indian prime minister, caused the team’s downfall.

Another senior member, Jairam Ramesh, lashed out at the prime minister after a video was released showing Modi consoling the Indian team players after the loss.

“The video of the self-imposed, choreographed consolation by the ‘Master Of Drama in India’ has completely exposed the insincerity behind the photographs released yesterday. The face-saving exercise has backfired. The youth of India will not be fooled by these desperate antics,” Ramesh, who is the general secretary in-charge of communications, said on X.

“You reached here after winning 10 matches. These things happen,” the prime minister is heard telling skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, holding their hands, in the video.

Later, the BJP hit out at Rahul Gandhi for his remarks and demanded an apology from Rahul. 

BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “What happened to you, Rahul Gandhi? You are using such words for the prime minister of the country. Our prime minister met the players and motivated them. Winning or losing is part of the game. Rahul Gandhi needs to apologise,” BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

“You need to learn from the past. Your mother (Sonia Gand ..Gandhi) used the word ‘Maut ka saudagar’ (dealer of deaths).”