'Like Jawaharlal Nehru...': Ex-Pakistan Minister praises Priyanka Gandhi for Palestine bag  

Former Pakistan minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain praised Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi for carrying a bag emblazoned with “Palestine” on it to Parliament, saying that the “granddaughter of a towering freedom fighter like Jawaharlal Nehru stood tall amidst pigmies.”

In a post on X, Fawad Hussain also criticised Pakistani Members of Parliament (MPs) for not displaying similar courage.  

“What else could we expect from a granddaughter of a towering freedom fighter like Jawaharlal Nehru? Priyanka Gandhi has stood tall amidst pigmies, such shame that to date, no Pakistani member of Parliament has demonstrated such courage. #ThankYou,” the former minister in the Imran Khan government said.  

On December 16, Priyanka Gandhi reached Parliament carrying a bag that showcased her solidarity with the Palestinian people. The bag included a watermelon motif, a long-recognised symbol of resistance in the region.  

Earlier this year, Priyanka Gandhi strongly criticised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over what she described as Israel's “genocidal actions” in Gaza. In June, Gandhi accused Netanyahu and his government of “barbarism,” following his address to the US Congress where he defended Israel's ongoing war in Gaza.  

Gandhi had then said, “It is the moral responsibility of every right-thinking individual, including all those Israeli citizens who do not believe in hatred and violence, and every government in the world to condemn the Israeli government's genocidal actions and force them to stop.”  

“It is no longer enough to speak up for the civilians, mothers, fathers, doctors, nurses, aid workers, journalists, teachers, writers, poets, senior citizens, and the thousands of innocent children who are being wiped out day after day by the horrific genocide taking place in Gaza,” she added in a post on X.  

The Middle East has witnessed escalating conflict since Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking over 200 hostages. The attack triggered the ongoing war in Gaza, where over 41,000 people have been killed.