While G20 leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, paid their respects at Mahatma Gandhi's Rajghat memorial, Maharashtra Leader of Opposition (LoP) Vijay Wadettiwar stirred controversy.
He questioned the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) legacy, suggesting they lack their own leaders with memorials to visit. He implied that key figures in Indian history, like Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, were affiliated with the Congress party, with Gandhi contributing to India's independence and Dr Ambedkar drafting the Indian Constitution.
Maharashtra Leader of Opposition (Congress) Vijay Wadettiwar says,"Baba (Babasaheb Ambedkar) drafted the Constitution and Bapu ( Mahatma Gandhi) gave freedom to this country. One cannot understand India's history without these two...The whole world knows this...We are very proud that the G 20 team visited Bapu's Samadhi... The BJP does not have a name in history to tell the world...The history is of Congress, Gandhi, Ambedkar and Nehru..." he said.
Vijay Wadettiwar, the Leader of the Opposition in Maharashtra, made these remarks shortly after Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the G20 leaders at Rajghat.
During the visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with leaders like US President Joe Biden, UK PM Rishi Sunak, Australian PM Anthony Albanese, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, as well as other heads of state, international organizations, and governments, observed a moment of silence and placed a wreath at Delhi's Rajghat to honour Mahatma Gandhi.