Jaishankar slams Rahul Gandhi for falshood over Trump's inauguration invite

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday accused Rahul Gandhi of resorting to "falsehood" after the Congress leader suggested that the minister's visit to Washington in December was to manage an invite for the prime minister to Donald Trump's inauguration as the US president.

Following Gandhi's comments in Parliament, Jaishankar said an invitation for the prime minister was not discussed at "any stage".

"We would not send our foreign minister to the United States to get our prime minister invited to the US President's 'coronation'," Gandhi said in Lok Sabha while participating in a debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address.

"Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi deliberately spoke a falsehood about my visit to the US in December 2024," Jaishankar said in a post on 'X'.

The external affairs minister said he visited the US to meet then Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NSA Jake Sullivan as well as to chair a meeting of India's Consuls General.

"During my stay, the incoming NSA-designate met with me," he said.

"At no stage was an invitation in respect of the PM discussed. It is common knowledge that our PM does not attend such events. In fact, India is generally represented by Special Envoys," Jaishankar said.

"Rahul Gandhi's lies may be intended politically. But they damage the nation abroad," he added.

The external affairs minister paid a six-day visit to the US from December 24 to 29. It was the first high-level trip from India to Washington after Trump won the US presidential election.

In his address in Lok Sabha, Gandhi centred his address around on what a presidential address under an INDIA bloc government would look like.

"When we talk to the US, we wouldn't send our foreign minister to (get) our PM invited to his (US President's) coronation. We will not send our foreign minister 3-4 times (to say) please invite our prime minister... because if we had a robust production system and were working on technologies, the US President would come to India and invite our PM," Gandhi said.

On January 20, Jaishankar represented India at inauguration of Trump as the 47th president of the US.