My joke would not be seen as expertise in Indian politics-Garry Kasparov

Russian chess legend Garry Kasparov recently made a joke on Indian politics which went viral. Kasparov’s comment on Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s love for chess drew a lot of attention on social media.

In response to a comment by actor Ranvir Shorey, Kasparov said he hoped his joke would not be seen as advocacy or expertise in Indian politics.

He went on to clarify that he simply could not help but notice a politician dabbling in his beloved game. Kasparov’s comment was seen as a dig at Gandhi’s recent claim that he was the best chess player among all Indian politicians.

Gandhi had named Kasparov as his favourite chess player and drew parallels between the game and politics. The Congress party even shared a video of Gandhi playing chess on his mobile phone while on the Lok Sabha election campaign trail.

Kasparov, who is a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and now based in Croatia after fleeing his country, responded to a user’s comment on his page, which read “feel so relieved that @Kasparov63 and @vishy64theking retired early and didn’t have to face the greatest chess genius of our times.”

Unusually, Kasparov responded with a cheeky dig, writing “Traditional (sic) dictates that you should first win from Raebareli before challenging for the top.” Gandhi filed his nomination from Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh and is also contesting from Wayanad.

Kasparov, who retired from chess in 2005, is now a political activist and a contemporary of Indian great Viswanathan Anand. In a recent congratulatory post on X, Kasparov described 17-year-old D Gukesh, who became the youngest challenger to the world title by winning the Candidates Tournament in Toronto, as “the Indian earthquake in Toronto”.