‘Low-level politics by BJP’: Congress cries foul over Rahul Gandhi’s 3rd row R-Day seat, flags ‘protocol mess-up’

The Congress party today launched a scathing attack on the BJP-led central government over the third-row seat allocation to its party leadership during the 77th Republic Day celebrations at Kartavya Path in New Delhi. It accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah of resorting to low-level politics to insult the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge.

Calling it a protocol mess-up, Congress MP Manickam Tagore shared an image from the 2014 Republic Day Parade and highlighted how the then Congress-led central government gave LK Advani a seat in the front row. “This was in 2014–look at where LK Advani ji was seated then. Why this protocol mess-up now? Is it because Modi and Shah want to insult Kharge ji and Rahul ji? Leaders of the Opposition cannot be insulted like this, especially on Republic Day,” he posted on the social media platform X.

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This was in 2014—look at where LK Advani ji was seated then.
Why this protocol mess-up now?
Is it because Modi and Shah want to insult Kharge ji and Rahul ji?

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Leaders of the Opposition cannot be insulted like this, especially on Republic Day.#RepublicDay https://t.co/1zUMsILyDX pic.twitter.com/tPOlpaGKTG

— Manickam Tagore .Bமாணிக்கம் தாகூர்.ப (@manickamtagore) January 26, 2026

He added, “Until 2014, opposition leaders Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, and LK Advani always sat there. This is a very low level of politics by the government. Opposition leaders being insulted on Republic Day is unacceptable. Republic Day is the day when we all should be united and celebrate India’s achievements that year.”

#WATCH | Delhi: On the seating of Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi and Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge in the third row during the Republic Day celebrations, Congress MP Manickam Tagore says, “This shows the mindset of the government and especially PM Modi and Home… pic.twitter.com/lNnyi6GYTV

— ANI (@ANI) January 26, 2026

Congress General Secretary Randeep Surjewala also stormed off the BJP and called it ‘unacceptable.’ He stressed that such acts reveal the frustration of a government plagued by an inferiority complex. He said, “Does such treatment of the leader of the opposition in the country meet the standards of any decorum, tradition, and protocol? In a democracy, differences will persist, but this treatment meted out to Shri Rahul Gandhi is unacceptable.”

Also, Senior Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha referred to this as a sheer lack of protocol and grace by the central government.