Archive · 8 Aug 2026
Rahul Gandhi Names Amarinder Singh His Favourite BJP Politician
Rahul Gandhi is a big leader in India.
He is the Leader of the Opposition, which means he leads the main party that is not in the government.
He held a question-and-answer session on Instagram where people could ask him anything.
Someone asked him which politician from the BJP party he likes the most.
He said Captain Amarinder Singh.
Amarinder Singh used to lead Gandhi's old party, the Congress, and was the Chief Minister of the Indian state of Punjab twice.
He left the Congress in 2021 and joined the BJP in 2022.
Gandhi said he gets along with him, thinks he is cool, and knows a lot about military history, ending with 'Hello, Uncle Amarinder!'.
Singh replied that his family friendship with the Gandhis will always stay, but he still supports the BJP.
Many people think Gandhi is being friendly because elections in Punjab are coming up in 2027.
Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, named Captain Amarinder Singh as his favourite BJP politician during an Instagram 'Ask Me Anything' session on Thursday.
Gandhi called Singh 'cool' and 'an expert on military history', ending his answer with 'Hello, Uncle Amarinder!'.
Amarinder Singh, 84, served as Punjab's Chief Minister twice under Congress before quitting in 2021 and joining the BJP in 2022, when his Punjab Lok Congress merged with the party.
Singh responded that his personal and family relations with Rahul and Sonia Gandhi will always remain, but politically he is committed to the BJP.
The AMA is part of Gandhi's Gen Z outreach following student protests over the NEET paper leak, with some interpreting the shout-out as outreach ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.
- Who
- Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and Captain Amarinder Singh, 84-year-old former Punjab Chief Minister who joined the BJP in 2022.
- What
- Gandhi revealed his favourite BJP politician, naming Captain Amarinder Singh during an Instagram 'Ask Me Anything' session with students and Gen Z, calling him 'cool' and an expert on military history.
- When
- Thursday, with Singh responding on Friday; the session followed student protests over the NEET paper leak in Delhi.
- Where
- New Delhi (report dateline); the exchange took place on Instagram.
- Why
- The AMA is part of Gandhi's outreach to Gen Z amid the NEET paper leak controversy, in which students sought then education minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, and the Congress 'Chatron Ki Goonj' campaign, with some seeing the shout-out as outreach ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.
Strategic Outreach
Personal Gesture
What Gandhi's shout-out means
Strategic Outreach
Many interpret the remark as an attempt to reach out to Amarinder Singh ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.
Personal Gesture
Others see it as a personal, light-hearted gesture — Singh has known Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi since childhood and was a friend and classmate of their father, the late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi — noting that Singh, at 84, is likely too old to return to mainstream politics.
Amarinder Singh's political position
Strategic Outreach
Singh says his personal and family relations with Rahul and Sonia Gandhi will always remain, but politically he is committed to the BJP.
Personal Gesture
Singh has shared that Rahul Gandhi wished him on his birthday and condoled his brother's loss — gestures he said were absent from the BJP — and has praised Congress's consultative culture as less centralised, suggesting lingering ties with his former party.
Timing of the praise
Strategic Outreach
Punjab BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliawal says Gandhi is remembering Singh only because Congress faces 'severe infighting' and is a 'sinking ship'.
Personal Gesture
Gandhi said he 'gets along with' Singh, presenting the remark as a friendly personal view rather than a political calculation.
- Event
- Instagram 'Ask Me Anything' session with students and Gen Z
- Favourite BJP politician named
- Captain Amarinder Singh
- Gandhi's description
- 'Cool' and 'an expert on military history'
- Amarinder Singh's past role
- Punjab Chief Minister (twice) and senior Congress leader
- Left Congress
- 2021
- Joined BJP
- 2022 (Punjab Lok Congress merged the same day)
- Age
- 84
- Related campaign
- 'Chatron Ki Goonj', launched by Congress in June 2026
Sources
Rahul Gandhi Reveals His 'Favourite Politician From BJP' During Instagram Ask Me Anything Session -VIDEO
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