Senior Congress leader Manish Tewari has found himself in the middle of a controversy after his social media remarks on political upheavals in South Asia and the Philippines were interpreted by the BJP as veiled criticism of Rahul Gandhi. In a post referencing mass demonstrations in the Philippines against alleged corruption in flood control projects, Tewari argued that public anger in Asia reflected a rejection of dynastic privilege.
“The toppling of – President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in Sri Lanka in July 2023, Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh in July 2024, KP Sharma Oli in Nepal in September 2025 and now the protests against Ferdinand Marcos Jr in the Philippines have one word written over them. ENTITLEMENT IS NO LONGER ACCEPTABLE TO GEN X, Y, Z,” he wrote.
The toppling of – President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in Sri Lanka in July 2023, Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh in July 2024 , KP Sharma Oli in Nepal in September 2025 and now the protests against Ferdinand Marcos Jr in Philippines have won word written over them
ENTITLEMENT IS NO LONGER…
— Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) September 23, 2025
He added, “Watch for my piece on ‘The Social Media Trends that toppled or are challenging ‘DYNASTS ‘ Study #nepokids or #TrillionPesoMarch in the meantime.”
BJP Targets Congress Leadership
The BJP seized upon his remarks to mount an attack on the Congress. Amit Malviya, the party’s IT cell chief, said on X, “Senior Congress leader Manish Tewari, member of the G-23 rebel group, takes aim at Rahul Gandhi – the ultimate ‘Nepo Kid’ of Indian politics. Forget Gen Z, even Congress’s own veterans are fed up with his regressive politics. The revolt is now from within.”
BJP spokesperson and MP Sambit Patra also took a swipe, telling the media, “People in our country have already removed the nepo kid in 2014.”
Manish Tewari Hits Back At BJP
Responding to the criticism, Tewari dismissed the attempt to drag Congress-BJP rivalry into the debate. “Gosh, I just wish that some people would grow up in life. Everything does not have to be dumbed down to a Cong-BJP, ‘he said she said’ or targeting X or Y,” he posted.
He emphasised the broader regional importance of the developments, stating, “What is happening in South Asia and East Asia has serious National Security implications and why it is happening needs to be understood in the correct perspective.”
Gosh I just wish that some people would grow up in life .
Everything does not have to be dumbed down to a Cong – BJP he said she said or targeting X or Y.
What is happening in South Asia and East Asia has serious National Security implications and why it is happening needs… https://t.co/brzQF7qGrM
— Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) September 23, 2025
Past Tensions with Party Leadership
This is not the first time Tewari has been at odds with the Congress establishment. During the parliamentary debate on Operation Sindoor, he was notably left out of the party’s speakers’ list, a move that raised eyebrows. Sharing a news report about the decision, he had captioned it with lines from the patriotic song Purab Aur Pachhim (1970): “Where love is the way of life, I sing songs of that land, I am an Indian, I speak of India. Jai Hind.”
When questioned by the media then, the Chandigarh MP had remarked, “There is a saying in English, ‘If you don’t understand my silence, you will never understand my words’.”
Tewari had been part of the Indian parliamentary delegations travelling abroad as part of New Delhi’s global outreach after Operation Sindoor. According to some accounts, he had expressed his willingness to speak in the debate, but his request was turned down amid apprehensions within the party that MPs who were part of such delegations might not deliver as strong an attack on the government as expected by the Opposition.
