Mismatch between Rahul Gandhi's income, foreign trips' expenses, says BJP

Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, party national spokesperson Sambit Patra said Gandhi went on 54 foreign trips in the last 22 years, on which a cumulative expenditure of Rs 60 crore was incurred.

New Delhi: The BJP on Thursday raised questions on Rahul Gandhi's foreign trips and demanded the disclosure of their source of funding, claiming that there is a clear mismatch between the year-on-year annual income of the Congress leader and the money spent on his travel abroad.

Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters here, party national spokesperson Sambit Patra said Gandhi went on 54 foreign trips in the last 22 years, on which a cumulative expenditure of Rs 60 crore was incurred. However, his year-on-year annual income, as disclosed in his poll affidavits in the last 10 years, remained about Rs 11 crore altogether, the BJP leader claimed.

According to the asset and liability declaration made by Gandhi in poll affidavits, the total disclosed assets stood at Rs 55.38 lakh in 2004 and Rs 20.39 crore in 2024, the BJP MP claimed.

"While Rs 60 crore was spent on these foreign trips, it's not fitting anywhere when his entire asset and liability stands at Rs 21 crore," Patra said, demanding that Gandhi and the Congress disclose who funded the foreign trips of the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Sharing year-on-year details of Gandhi's foreign trips, Patra also alleged that the Congress leader did not disclose many of his visits abroad and demanded answers from him on these "mystery trips".

"This raises legal questions. Under the FCRA provisions, any MP, judge or government official has to take prior permission from the government, Ministry of Home Affairs, if their foreign visits are funded by any agency," he said.

"If going on any foreign tour at personal expense, then you have to disclose it in the income tax return. If you receive any gift abroad or money is spent on you in an undisclosed manner, then it attracts provisions of the Black Money Act 2015 also.

"Has he obtained mandatory prior approval of the MHA for his foreign trips? Where are the documents? Has he made an income tax entry disclosure?" the BJP leader asked.

Patra claimed that the CRPF, in a letter to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in September last year, raised objections to Gandhi's six "undeclared foreign trips" between December 2024 and September 2025.

In its official letter, the CRPF noted it was an "extremely worrisome" issue as each of these six foreign trips was undertaken in violation of the yellow book of the SPG protection, he said.

"We want to ask that on May 3, 2026, night a visual footage of Gandhi's private visit to Muscat, Oman. He didn't declare any public programme. There was no disclosure of the host and no itinerary was disclosed. Who had invited him? No FCRA Section 6 permission has been shown," the BJP leader said.

"If the Oman lead is substantiated, then it becomes the seventh entry in that pattern (of undisclosed foreign trips in violation of yellow book security protocol)," Patra added.

He said Gandhi undertaking foreign visits, including his "mystery trips" raises grave questions, especially when he aspires to become the prime minister of the country in future.

"With what motive did he travel to Oman? Who did he meet there? What did he speak against the country there? What kind of conspiracy did he hatch?" Patra asked.

"It's not that the government of India will spare him. This is new India. There are cameras installed everywhere. Everything is being counted and taken into account. We have released just a small ledger today. There are umpteen papers and facts available. (Rahul Gandhi) will not be spared," he said.