Former Union minister Dr Shakeel Ahmad, who left the Congress Party in November 2025, has stated that he may be attacked by Congress workers. Days after calling Rahul Gandhi a “coward” and an “insecure” politician, Ahmed has said he has information that workers of the Congress party have been ordered to attack his residence.
Ahmed wrote, “some Congress colleagues have secretly informed me that the national leadership of the Congress has issued orders to the Bihar Congress/Youth Congress that tomorrow, on 27th January, an attack should be carried out on my residences in Patna and Madhubani under the pretext of burning an effigy. This is against the principles of democracy.”
अभी अभी काँग्रेस के कुछ साथियों ने गुप्त रूप से मुझे ख़बर किया है कि काँग्रेस के राष्ट्रीय नेतृत्व ने बिहार कांग्रेस / युवा काँग्रेस को यह आदेश दिया है कि कल दिनांक 27 जनवरी को पुतला दहन के बहाने मेरे पटना और मधुबनी निवास पर आक्रमण किया जाय।
— Dr Shakeel Ahmad (@Ahmad_Shakeel) January 26, 2026
यह जनतंत्र के सिद्धांत के ख़िलाफ़ है।
Ahmad then uploaded a screenshot of a WhatsApp group message in which a member urged others to burn his effigies for insulting Rahul Gandhi. “Now my information has been proven absolutely correct. Many thanks to the old associates of Congress. There is a saying in our Bihar: Old friends are the ones who come in handy. Is this happening without Rahul’s orders,” he asked.
The message sent by “Shiv Prakesh” in BYPC group read, “Former Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad is persistently making unfounded allegations against our esteemed leader, Rahul Gandhi. The senior leadership has directed all district and assembly chiefs to burn an effigy of Ahmad in their respective regions tomorrow, 27th January and register a strong protest. All state vice-presidents, general secretaries and secretaries of the Bihar Pradesh Youth Congress are urged to ensure their involvement in the success of this program. Please send related photos, videos and newspaper articles and clippings to your respective zonal in-charge.”
अब तो मेरी जानकारी बिल्कुल सही साबित हुई। काँग्रेस के पुराने साथियों का बहुत धन्यवाद।
— Dr Shakeel Ahmad (@Ahmad_Shakeel) January 26, 2026
हमारे बिहार में एक कहावत कि
पुराने दोस्त ही काम आते हैं।
क्या यह राहुल जी के आदेश के बिना हो रहा है? pic.twitter.com/qtgBCemfH4
Ahmad, a three-time MLA and two-term MP from Bihar, quit the grand old party after its dismal performance in the state assembly election, maintaining that he felt humiliated there. “Rahul Gandhi is a coward and an insecure person. He does not get that ‘boss feeling’ before anyone who is senior to him or has a big public support. He is uncomfortable with any such person and is thus dictatorial and not democratic,” he charged on 24th January (Saturday).
He further emphasised how the Gandhi scion who led the party in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections even lost from his own Amethi constituency which is a traditional stronghold of his family and blamed his “attitude” for the result. Ahmad even conveyed that he did not encounter anyone complaining about the removal of their name from the voter list during Bihar’s Special Intensive Revision drive.
Rahul Gandhi is ‘undemocratic, responsible for party’s electoral debacles’
The Raebareli MP was then referred to as “undemocratic” and charged by the ex-Congress general secretary for the party’s repeated election defeats. He highlighted the party’s inability to confront the problems and the incompetence of the top leadership. “Even if Rahul Gandhi wants, he still can’t take Congress below the 2nd position. The reason is that every other party is only in one state,” he mocked.
Ahmad added, “There are many leaders in Congress who have been politicians long before Rahul Gandhi became one. The day he won his first election, I won my fifth. I believe he is uncomfortable sitting with those who don’t think of him as their boss. I have felt this for a long time, but when you stay in party you don’t say such things.”
Additionally, he revealed that Rahul Gandhi feels superior due to his Nehru-Gandhi ancestry and mentioned, “I used to tell him don’t do this, don’t do that. I think he used to feel offended that someone is telling me these things. He feels that everything is given to Congress by his family.”
Ahmad further outlined, “There is no internal democracy in the Congress party and whatever Rahul Gandhi says is final. There are many leaders in Congress who are disappointed, but their next generation has joined the party. So they are in Congress even after facing humiliation.”
“I wanted vote for Shashi Tharoor (for the post of Congress President). But when I saw that the loyalists of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi were seeking votes for Mallikarjun Kharge. I voted for him against my will as I did not want to waste my vote,” he recounted when questioned about the conflict between Tharoor and Congress leaders.
Threatened by popular leaders, humiliates seniors, failed to wholeheartedly accept Congress
“Rahul Gandhi feels threatened from those who have a strong grassroots presence or are well-liked in their constituencies (such as Tharoor), particularly the ones who are more experienced than him in the political landscape.” Ahmad expressed in a 25th January (Sunday) interveiw with NDTV. According to him, Rahul Gandhi seeks the ousting of all senior leaders from the party.
Ahmad stressed that the ex-Congress chief has formed a powerful faction within the party, functioning exclusively within that group. He remarked that although the party has wholeheartedly accepted Rahul Gandhi, the latter has not reciprocated this acceptance towards it.
He reiterated that multiple Congress veterans are subjected to daily humiliation yet they choose to remain silent for the future of their children and stated that he frequently receives such messages from these leaders. Ahmad added that he would not have had the courage to voice his opinions if any of his three sons had shown an inclination towards a political career. He noted that they are not interested in politics which allowed him the freedom to express his thoughts openly.
