Archive · 13 Aug 2026
Sandeep Dikshit's Meloni remark at Rahul Gandhi event sparks backlash
A politician named Sandeep Dikshit made a joke about Italy's leader, Giorgia Meloni, at a meeting of his political party in India.
The meeting was led by Rahul Gandhi, another politician.
Mr. Gandhi was making fun of India's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, because Modi likes to hug other world leaders.
To show what he meant, Mr. Gandhi went to hug Mr. Dikshit.
After the hug, Mr. Dikshit joked, "Did you think I was Meloni?"
Many people online thought the joke was not nice, because it brought a woman leader into a joke about physical closeness.
Some people said it was sexist and rude, while others said it was just political joking.
The short moment was recorded and spread quickly on social media.
This shows how a few seconds of humour at a political event can start a big argument.
Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit faced online backlash after joking about Italian PM Giorgia Meloni at a Rahul Gandhi event in New Delhi.
The quip came during Gandhi's speech mocking PM Narendra Modi's habit of hugging foreign leaders as part of foreign policy.
Gandhi hugged Dikshit as a demonstration, prompting Dikshit to ask whether he had been mistaken for Meloni; Gandhi replied, "I haven't reached that stage yet."
Critics called the remark "crass," "sexist" and misogynistic, while supporters called it harmless political banter aimed at Modi's diplomatic style.
The joke drew on the "Melodi" social media tag for the widely discussed Modi-Meloni public rapport.
- Who
- Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit and Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as the subject of the joke.
- What
- Dikshit joked about Meloni during Gandhi's mockery of PM Modi's foreign policy of hugging leaders, sparking accusations of sexism.
- When
- Thursday at the convention; reports published August 13, 2026.
- Where
- Rachnatmak Congress Organising National Convention, New Delhi.
- Why
- The remark was part of Gandhi's criticism of Modi's diplomatic style, but critics felt it reduced a female foreign leader to a romantic gag.
Critics of the remark
Defenders of the remark
Nature of the joke
Critics of the remark
The quip was crass, sexist and misogynistic, using a female foreign head of government as shorthand for a romantic or personal gag.
Defenders of the remark
It was harmless political banter clearly aimed at PM Modi's public style of diplomacy, not a comment about Meloni herself.
Impact on the political message
Critics of the remark
The remark was an avoidable lapse in judgment that weakened the political point Rahul Gandhi was trying to make.
Defenders of the remark
The exchange was effective satire that mocked Modi's much-publicised diplomatic imagery and drew laughter from the audience.
- Event
- Rachnatmak Congress Organising National Convention
- Location
- New Delhi
- Date of report
- August 13, 2026
- Person who made the remark
- Sandeep Dikshit, former East Delhi MP and son of Sheila Dikshit
- Subject of the joke
- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
- Context
- Rahul Gandhi's critique of PM Narendra Modi's hugging diplomacy
- Gandhi's reply
- "I haven't reached that stage yet."
- Social media tag
- "Melodi" for the Modi-Meloni rapport