Why Rahul Gandhi, Kharge skipped Red Fort Independence Day event again?

New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi stayed away from the 80th Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort on Saturday, marking the second consecutive year that the two senior Congress leaders did not attend the national ceremony led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Their absence has once again brought questions over protocol and seating arrangements at the Independence Day event to the centre of a political dispute.

Both leaders hold high positions in the official order of precedence, with the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition enjoying Cabinet minister rank and the Congress president, who is also Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, holding an equivalent rank.

The Defence Ministry had earlier maintained that seating at the ceremony would follow the official Table of Precedence, which determines protocol at state and ceremonial occasions.

A dispute that has returned

The latest absence comes two years after Rahul Gandhi's seating at the 2024 Independence Day ceremony triggered a major controversy.

Gandhi, who had recently become Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, was seated several rows behind the front section at the Red Fort. The Congress objected, arguing that his position warranted a more prominent place in accordance with protocol.

The Defence Ministry rejected the criticism, saying the seating plan had been adjusted to accommodate Olympians who were being felicitated at the ceremony.

Rahul Gandhi and Kharge also stayed away from the Red Fort celebrations in 2025. Their absence this year therefore turns what began as a seating dispute into a recurring political flashpoint between the Congress and the government.

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BJP questions Congress absence

The BJP has criticised the Congress leaders for not attending the national ceremony.

BJP leaders questioned the justification for Kharge's absence and argued that senior political leaders should participate in an event of national significance irrespective of political differences.

Kharge participated in the Independence Day programme at the Congress headquarters instead.

The Congress, meanwhile, has repeatedly raised objections over how its senior leaders are seated at major state functions. The party had also questioned the seating arrangements at the Republic Day celebrations earlier this year, alleging that Rahul Gandhi and Kharge were placed in the third row.

The government had maintained that the arrangements were made according to the Table of Precedence.

Wider political tensions

The latest controversy comes just after a turbulent Monsoon Session of Parliament, where repeated disruptions and confrontations between the government and Opposition affected the functioning of both Houses.

The Congress and some Opposition parties also boycotted the customary tea hosted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla after the session ended.

Against this backdrop, the decision by the Congress's two senior leaders to stay away from the Red Fort ceremony adds another layer to the strained relationship between the ruling BJP and the Opposition.

The dispute is therefore no longer only about where a leader is seated. It has become part of a larger argument between the government and the Congress over protocol, political recognition and the treatment of constitutional offices at major national events.