Bang, pop, crackle, boom. Off went the firecrackers as India celebrated Diwali. The festival greeting by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, describing Diwali as "khushiyon ka ek Eid", appeared to have generated a sharp acoustic shock wave, inviting edged comments from the ruling BJP.
"Deepavali ki subhkamnaaye sabhi ko main deta hoon. Ye ek bahut bada tyohaar hamare Hindustan main sabhi log manate hain aur iska ek hi karan hai ki khushiyon ka ek Eid hai aur bahut din lambe samay tak chalne waal Eid yahi hai (I extend my best wishes for Deepavali to everyone. It is a major festival celebrated by all across India; essentially, it is a grand celebration of joy, afestival of Eid - one that spans a long period of time)," Kharge, during an interaction with reporters, said.
#BREAKING | Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge's "Diwali Khushiyon Ki Eid" remark sparks political row, with BJP accusing Congress of appeasement politics and alleging anti-Hindu mindset. @himanshusm reports. https://t.co/0SItJvhpsK
— NDTV (@ndtv) November 9, 2026
Kharge urged citizens to use the festive period to strengthen unity and remove social divisions. Congress leaders and supporters defended the statement, saying the 84-year-old leader intended to promote communal harmony and mutual respect.
The Congress argued that "Eid" was used in its broader sense of a joyous celebration and was meant as a metaphorical call for national unity across cultures.
The Eid reference for a Hindu festival has not gone down well with the BJP, which has accused the principal Opposition party of having a "bitter Hindu mindset".
"M Kharge's twisted Diwali greetings underline the blunt fact how the Congress party will never hesitate to hurt and humiliate the faith and sentiment of crores of Hindu devotees just to peddle their toxic politics of religious appeasement," BJP spokesperson CR Kesavan alleged.
Kesavan accused the Congress chief of having earlier demeaned the Mahakumbh and also used the opportunity to heap criticism on Rahul Gandhi, who though has not contributed to the alleged row that the BJP appears to be angry about.
"Earlier it was the same Kharge ji who offensively demeaned the sacred Mahakumbh, and the nation will never forget and forgive how Rahul Gandhi crudely insulted the chhath puja, labeling it as drama. The Congress party continues to harbour a very bitter Hindu Virodhi mindset to just pander to its divisive politics of religious politics," Kesavan alleged.
Last year, M Kharge had questioned the BJP if taking dips into the Ganga would end poverty in the country or fill hungry stomachs and accused the BJP leaders of taking dips for the camera. The Congress chief was raising a larger question, but the BJP appeared to take offense, equating it to an insult to the Mahakumbh.
READ | M Kharge Asks If Ganga Dips During Mahakumbh Would End Poverty. BJP Replies
"I don't want to question anyone's 'aastha (faith)'. If anyone feels bad, I apologise. But tell me, when a child is dying of hunger, is not going to school, labourers are not getting their dues, at such a time, these people are spending thousands of rupees and competing for taking dips (in the Ganga)," Kharge had said, adding that the dips continue till it appears good in photographs.
The "drama" reference is to Rahul Gandhi's comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, not the Chhath festival itself.
Rahul Gandhi had alleged last year that the Prime Minister's proposed dip in the Yamuna River during Chhath Puja was a "drama", claiming that the plan was shelved when it was discovered that a patch of clean water had been created artificially for the occasion. The Congress leader also said that PM Modi would "do anything for votes, even dance".
READ | "Rahul Gandhi Shouldn't Comment": LJP's Sambhavi Choudhary On 'Drama' Remark
The BJP has accused Kharge's Eid reference for Diwali as proof of the party practicing appeasement.
"This is blatant appeasement. This is in series of statements that Congress party has made which are anti-Sanatan. Will they draw the same analogy when it comes to Eid. Will they recall Eid with respect to analogy related to a Hindu festival," BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari, a former journalist, told NDTV.
AIMIM national spokesperson Waris Pathan also took a sharp swipe at Congress chief Kharge, terming his remarks a political tactic aimed at electoral gains.
"Diwali is a grand festival celebrated with immense enthusiasm by our Hindu brothers, and Eid is equally a celebration shared by all. Statements equating the two festivals are nothing more than a political stunt to appease a specific voting community," he said.
The BJP leader said the Congress' history is consistent with such statements and claimed that "Sonia Gandhi was happy looking at Babri", a refernce to a statement by Congress leader Salman Khurshid.
"This should not be seen in isolation. Recall what Sonia Gandhi said that she was extremely happy looking at Babri. So the Congress party cries for Babri, it cries for Batla (The 2008 encounter in a Delhi locality) and insults Deepavali," Bhandari said.
In 2012, Salman Khurshid said when Sonia Gandhi was shown the Batla encounter images, she "wept bitterly".
"I was not a minister at that time but still took the issue of the Batla House encounter to Sonia Gandhi. When we showed photographs of that incident to Mrs Gandhi, she wept bitterly," Khurshid had said in 2012.
READ | Sonia Gandhi 'cried bitterly' after seeing Batla House encounter images: Salman Khurshid in Azamgarh
The BJP leader accused the Congress of "pure votebank politics ahead of UP elections", which are due early next year.
"The Congress continues to sit in the opposition because inherently the DNA of the congress is anti-Sanatan this is why when Udhayanidhi Stalin made dengue, malaria statement against Sanatan, the Congress was silent," Bhandari said.
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