India On Moon: Mamata Banerjee Recounts Wrong Rakesh's Space Travel; Rajasthan Minister Congratulates 'Chandrayaan Passengers'

As the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) created history on Wednesday (August 23) with the successful landing of its Chandrayaan-3 on the lunar South Pole, political leaders across the nation took to various public forums to express their joy over the achievement.

However, there were a couple of instances when leaders messed up their congratulatory messages, albeit in humorous ways.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's well-meaning words on the occasion of Chandrayaan-3's successful landing on the Moon fell unfortunate victim to a two-fold hilarious goof-up.

While jumping on the bandwagon of rejoicing on Vikram lander's soft touchdown on the lunar surface, the TMC supremo recalled film director Rakesh Roshan, and not astronaut Rakesh Sharma, as the first Indian to travel beyond the earth's orbit.

She further confused the feat, with which Sharma is generally associated, and credited Rakesh Roshan, father of Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan, with being the first Indian to land on the Moon.

"I remember when they reached the moon, Indira Gandhi asked Rakesh Roshan how India looked from there, for space," Banerjee said during an event.

Meanwhile, a minister in the Rajasthan government put his ignorance about current affairs on public display when he started congratulating the "passengers" aboard Chandrayaan-3, which he thought was a manned space mission.

Rajasthan's Sports Minister Ashok Chandna was speaking to reporters when he said, "We were successful and made a safe landing, I salute all our passengers who have been sent in Chandrayaan."

Video clips of both the above-mentioned incidents went viral on social media, with users subjecting the two leaders and, in some instances their respective parties, to heavy trolling.

Taking a swipe at CM Mamata Banerjee, Bengal BJP leader Keya Ghosh wrote on X (formerly Twitter), "Rakesh Roshan becomes the first actor-director to venture out into space... Courtesy Mamata Banerjee... Sorry Rakesh Sharma."

Rakesh Roshan becomes the first actor-director to venture out into space..... Courtesy Mamata Banerjee.
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Sorry Rakesh Sharma pic.twitter.com/uwnGZCAxqx

— Keya Ghosh (@keyakahe) August 23, 2023

Chandrayaan-3, the third edition of ISRO's lunar probe series, has a threefold objective: to demonstrate a safe and soft landing on the lunar surface; to demonstrate the maneuvering of the Pragyan rover on the moon; and to conduct in-situ scientific experiments.