At the end of his fiery speech during Friday’s no-confidence motion debate in Parliament, Congress President Rahul Gandhi walked up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and hugged him. The cameras caught Modi looking startled, before he recovered his composure quickly enough to offer Gandhi a handshake. As Gandhi returned to his seat, he was caught smiling broadly and winking, presumably, at a colleague.
#WATCH Rahul Gandhi walked up to PM Narendra Modi in Lok Sabha and gave him a hug, earlier today #NoConfidenceMotion pic.twitter.com/fTgyjE2LTt
— ANI (@ANI) July 20, 2018
The hug came after Gandhi had launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party government on several issues, including the Rafale deal to buy French fighter jets, women’s safety, the agrarian crisis, demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax.
Gandhi’s speech was frequently interrupted the ruling BJP, prompting Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to adjourned the House at one point.
When the session resumed as as Gandhi worked up to a climax, he said: “I’m grateful to BJP and RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ideological parent of the BJP] that they’ve explained the meaning of Congress, and of being Hindu.”
He added: “You have anger for me. For you, I’m Pappu. But I have no anger for you. I am Congress.”
There was some commentary about whether the political implications of the gesture. Dhruv Rathee, who has a popular YouTube show, made a reference to the “jaadu ki jhappi” or magic hugs that the character played by actor Sanjay Dutt hands out in the hit Bollywood film Munna Bhai MBBS.
Rahul Gandhi's #JaaduKiJhappi will go down in history.
— Dhruv Rathee (@dhruv_rathee) July 20, 2018
It is an epic gesture in times when hate, trolling, mob lynchings, communal polarization have become a common thing in the country.
But for other users, the moment of political theatre was the opportunity to set off a thousand internet memes.
CHIPKAA DIYA pic.twitter.com/oV5AidRKxJ
— somalthakore (@somalthakore) July 20, 2018
*he’s just not that into you* pic.twitter.com/uUFjwaO6KP
— Sreenivasan Jain (@SreenivasanJain) July 20, 2018
Narendra Modi digging field to pull out Nehru from 1960s in order to reply Rahul Gandhi in 2018. pic.twitter.com/Bx9hpbBhaA
— History of India (@RealHistoryPic) July 20, 2018
That was quick!!! #RahulHugsModi pic.twitter.com/fRFIAUd1di
— Radha Khan (@RadhaKhn) July 20, 2018
Modi is known for enthusiastically hugging his foreign counterparts and some Twitter users suggested that Gandhi had used the occasion to beat him at his own game.
Pic 1: How you react when cousins from abroad bring Toblerone, Hershey's Kisses and m&ms.
— Haroun. (@DorkyMcDarkFace) July 20, 2018
Pic 2: How you react when cousin from Pune brings Bakarwadi. pic.twitter.com/6GAVdKxiip
Was @rahulgandhi’s hug of @narendramodi the most unscripted photo-op in 50 months, after @BjpBiplab’s? #NoConfidenceMotion #PappuKiJhappi pic.twitter.com/2ki3uZGoiD
— churumuri (@churumuri) July 20, 2018
Some users have also compared Gandhi’s wink with Malayalam actress Priya Prakash Varrier’s iconic wink in her film Oru Adaar Love, which also became an internet sensation.
She winked at the nation and created an uproar
— Anoop Chathoth (@anoopc) July 20, 2018
He hoodwinked the nation and created an uproar #BhukampAaGaya#NoConfidenceMotion #Pappu #RahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/hRWJ9qSlHM
Don’t know who created it ( Received on WA) but this is hilarious pic.twitter.com/03a7JKnz5n
— Joy (@Joydas) July 20, 2018