The BJP on Saturday (August 22, 2026) dubbed Rahul Gandhi’s student event in Pune as “Paise Ki Goonj”, alleging that the Congress had paid social media influencers to mobilise crowds, triggering a fiery response from the Opposition, which claimed the saffron party feared the growing Gen-Z support.
“Rahul Gandhi has not been able to find a concrete issue against the Narendra Modi government at the Centre. Mr.
Despite making allegations and counter-allegations about fake narratives and trying various political experiments, people are not ready to trust him,” he said. Tapase said the country functions through dialogue and there was no reason for the BJP to be apprehensive about a programme aimed at raising issues concerning students and youth.
Addressing a press conference at the BJP’s Maharashtra headquarters in Mumbai, Mr. Ban alleged that the Congress was trying to create an impression of a spontaneous public response to Gandhi’s ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ programme by paying people to attend it and promote it on social media. “The programme is not ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ but ‘Paise Ki Goonj’. The Congress is gathering crowds with money,” Mr. Ban alleged. BJP Maharashtra vice-president Keshav Upadhyay alleged that Mr. Gandhi’s Pune programme was an attempt to create a political platform by using students’ issues.
While BJP spokesperson Navnath Ban alleged that the Congress had spent nearly ₹10 crore to buy attendance by paying up to ₹35,000 per influencer for the “Chhatron Ki Goonj” programme, Opposition leader Sachin Sawant retorted that BJP leaders were terrified of Gandhi’s growing influence among youngsters. “Though the programme is called ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’, it is actually Rahul Gandhi’s political battle,” Upadhyay said, claiming that the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition had lost 100 elections, but had still failed to find a clear political direction.
