Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday hit back at Congress leader Pawan Khera after Khera took a swipe at him over a video showing him swimming in a river in Arunachal Pradesh.
Khera had shared the video on X and said it showed how “badly Rahul Gandhi” had got under the BJP’s skin. Taking a dig at Rijiju, Khera said the minister “can’t even go for a half-naked swim without invoking Rahul Gandhi.”
Rijiju responded on August 25, accusing Khera of making an “indecent comment” and questioning his conduct as a parliamentarian.
“Dear Pawan Khera, I’ll report to CM Himanta Biswa Sarma about your indiscipline conduct if you talk about half-naked swimming,” Rijiju wrote on X.
Defending his swimming activities, Rijiju said he often swims with people from his village and does so to inspire the local community and his followers.
“I swim with my villagers to inspire my people and followers,” he said.
Rijiju also dismissed the suggestion that Rahul Gandhi was on his mind when he posted the video.
“Rahul doesn’t exist in my mind when I’m with my people,” he said, adding that Congress workers had themselves started comparing his swimming with Gandhi’s activities.
Rijiju said his earlier references to Gandhi were made only in response to such comparisons. He also said he had received no formal training for such activities and described himself as a “natural khiladi” in the rivers of Arunachal Pradesh.
The exchange followed a video posted by Rijiju on Sunday showing him swimming in a river in Arunachal Pradesh. He said navigating the state’s fast-flowing rivers had been part of his life since childhood.
The Union minister also cautioned people against entering deep waters without knowing how to swim, pointing out that several people had drowned in Arunachal Pradesh’s rivers.
The latest exchange is another episode in the ongoing fitness-related political banter involving Rijiju and Rahul Gandhi, which has previously included discussions on exercise and jiu-jitsu.
