Modi Constitution remark: PM’s ‘pocket’ jibe at Kisan Tak event seen as dig at Rahul Gandhi
ANI described the comment as a veiled dig at Rahul Gandhi, and the reports carried no response from Congress.
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The Modi Constitution remark came on Thursday 12 November, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi said some people think the nation’s Constitution and democracy “reside in their pocket”, ANI reported. Modi was addressing the Kisan Tak Bharat Agriculture Conference 2026 in Delhi. ANI described the comment as a veiled dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who often carries a copy of the Constitution at public events. ANI’s report does not quote Modi naming him.
Modi Constitution remark: what he said at the conference
Modi said: “These days, some people pull out the Constitution from their pockets. And they think that the nation’s Constitution and democracy reside in their pocket.”
ANI said Modi also questioned the conduct of those who remained under an “intoxication of authority” even after losing power. “Even while out of power, they remain under a distinct intoxication of authority,” he said. He added: “That was the reality back then, and today, those very people go around preaching about tolerance and democracy.”
Key numbers
- Rs 7 per litre: the diesel price increase the government allowed, according to Modi, per Daily Prabhat.
- Rs 50 per litre: the increase Modi said was required.
- Rs 43 per litre: the burden he said the government absorbed.
- 40 to 50 per cent: the rise in diesel prices Modi cited for neighbouring countries.
- USD 122 per barrel: the crude oil price after the West Asia conflict, as stated in a Daily Prabhat headline on the speech.
Diesel prices and the farmers claim
Earlier in the address, Modi said the government increased diesel prices by only Rs 7 per litre, whereas an increase of Rs 50 per litre was required, and absorbed the burden of Rs 43 per litre itself, ANI reported. He added that diesel prices had risen by 40 to 50 per cent in neighbouring countries during the same period, but that the increase was not allowed to happen in India.
“Yet, we did not let our nation’s farmers feel the heat,” the Prime Minister said. These figures are Modi’s own, and the reports do not give an independent check of them.
Gujarat ranking and the Delhi allegation
Modi recalled that Gujarat was ranked number one in an economy-related ranking while he was its chief minister, by an institution named after a former Prime Minister. He alleged that those in power in Delhi at the time could not accept the recognition and issued directions to researchers requiring them to seek prior approval before publishing reports, ANI said. The reports do not name the institution or the officials, and the allegation has not been independently verified.
Background: the Kisan Tak conference and farm support
The speech centred on farmers’ welfare. Our earlier report on the Cabinet’s rabi fertiliser subsidy for 2026-27 covers another farm support measure.
Rahul Gandhi and the Congress response
The reports seen at the time of writing carried no response from the party or from Gandhi.
What happens next
NIS will update this story if Congress replies to the Modi Constitution remark.
A Prime Minister's remark that appears aimed at the main opposition face is likely to draw a Congress reply, which will decide whether it becomes a longer row. The diesel price figures are Modi's own claims and are not independently checked in the reports.