When Parsis became 'Gandhis': Story behind Rahul Gandhi's surname amid PM Modi's 'stolen' dig

Rahul Gandhi is the son of Rajiv Gandhi, Indira Gandhi’s elder son.

• PM Modi called Gandhis "habitual thieves," prompting opposition walkout.
• He accused the Gandhis of "stealing" their surname from Mahatma Gandhi
• Rahul Gandhi responded, saying Modi was scared of truth and resorted to lies

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In a scathing attack in Rajya Sabha on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi labelled the Gandhis as "habitual thieves" and accused them of "stealing" their own surname from Mahatma Gandhi.

Addressing a debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address at the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, the Prime Minister wondered why the family members do not use the name of their actual forefathers.

“For some people, stealing is a family profession. What’s shocking is that those habitual thieves have also stolen surname of a Gujarati, Mahatma Gandhi," the Prime Miniser said even as the Opposition resorted to sloganeering and staged a walkout.

PM Modi’s remarks against the Gandhis also appeared to be a riposte to a similar jibe earlier made by Rahul Gandhi over the “Modi” surname. Rahul had faced a defamation case when he questioned in 2019 why several accused individuals share the “Modi” surname, drawing parallels between the Prime Minister and fugitives such as Lalit Modi and Nirav Modi.

Story behind the Gandhi surname

The ‘Gandhi’ in Rahul Gandhi’s name comes from his paternal grandfather Feroze Gandhi who was freedom fighter, journalist and MP from Raebareli.

According to a report in The Indian Express, Feroze Gandhi was born Feroze Jehangir Ghandy to Parsi parents in Bombay. At 18, he came in contact with the Nehru family. It was also around this time that he changed his surname from Ghandy to Gandhi, in honour of Mahatma Gandhi.

The change reflected both phonetic simplification and his political alignment with Gandhian ideology.

Indira Gandhi, the daughter of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, adopted the ‘Gandhi’ surname after her marriage to Feroze Gandhi on March 26, 1942, and the family has continued to use the surname since then. Rahul Gandhi is the son of Rajiv Gandhi, Indira Gandhi’s elder son.

Responding to PM Modi’s comment at the Rajya Sabha, Rahul Gandhi said in a post on X that Modi was so scared of truth that he sought refuge in lies.