'When Indira Gandhi Reached Moon': Mamata Banerjee's Latest Blunder Sparks Meme Fest

Just days after confusing Rakesh Sharma with Rakesh Roshan, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made another blunder on Monday, claiming that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had "gone to the Moon."

While addressing a rally on the Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) foundation day anniversary, Banerjee stated, "When Indira Gandhi reached the Moon, she asked Rakesh (Sharma) how Hindustan (India) looked from there. He replied, 'Sare jahaan se achcha' (better than the entire world)."

Videos of this latest gaffe by the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) leader circulated widely on social media, particularly on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Just last week, while congratulating the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, Banerjee mistakenly stated that Indira Gandhi had inquired about India's appearance from the Moon from 'Rakesh Roshan.' However, it was Rakesh Sharma, a former Indian Air Force pilot, who engaged in a conversation with Gandhi. Sharma did not travel to the Moon; he participated in a Soviet space mission, visiting the Soviet Union's Salyut 7 Orbital Station in low Earth orbit. This conversation between Gandhi and Sharma took place in April 1984. At 74 years old, Sharma remains the only Indian to have traveled to space.

Banerjee's most recent misstatement occurred on August 23, shortly after ISRO successfully executed a soft landing with the Chandrayaan-3 lander module on the lunar surface, establishing India as the fourth nation to achieve this feat, after the United States, Russia, and China. Furthermore, the lander module touched down at the South Pole of the Moon, its intended destination, making India the only country to reach this lunar region.