Rahul questions the government over Rubio’s proposed meeting with Indian officials in Mumbai

Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi. File. | Photo credit: Sushil Kumar Verma

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday (Oct 16, 2026) questioned the government over US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s proposed meeting with Indian government officials in Mumbai next week, claiming that officials in the Ministry of External Affairs were “confused”.

He also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi may want to explain the matter.

The Congress leader’s remarks came a day after US envoy Sergio Gore said Mr Rubio would meet Indian government officials in Mumbai and “we expect Minister Dr S Jaishankar to be there”.

In a post on X, Mr Gandhi said: “Mr Rubio has summoned his staff to Mumbai. Modi ji, your officials at the Ministry of External Affairs are confused about what is going on. You may want to explain. Unless of course you want me to.”

Neither the government nor the BJP had an immediate comment on Mr Gandhi’s remark.

Mr Rubio will travel to India next week, where he will visit a Reliance unit in Jamnagar, Gujarat, and later meet with officials from the Ministry of External Affairs in Mumbai.

The Congress on Thursday (Oct 15, 2026) took a swipe at the Modi government over Mr Rubio’s visit to India and asked why the Ministry of External Affairs was silent on External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s “attempt” with the US leader in Mumbai.

Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said it was not surprising that Mr Gor had just given more details about Mr Rubio’s upcoming visit to Mumbai.

“It’s also not entirely surprising to hear him say that Mr Rubio will meet Indian government officials in Mumbai. But what is quite extraordinary is his statement that ‘we expect Minister Dr Jaishankar to join us there along with other individuals,'” Mr Ramesh told X.

Since when is the announcement of meetings of the Indian External Affairs Minister in India being outsourced to someone other than the official spokesperson of the MEA, asked Mr. Ramesh.

During an interactive session at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum, Mr Gor said Mr Rubio would meet Indian government officials in Mumbai and “we expect Minister Dr S Jaishankar to be there along with other individuals from Delhi who will make the trip to see him in Mumbai”.

Mr. Rubio will first visit Samarkand, Uzbekistan, before traveling to Mumbai and Jamnagar, Gujarat, from October 17-22.

Published – 16 Oct 2026 13:38 IST