RPG boss Harsh Goenka’s 5-yr-old picture with ex-Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu draws criticism from netizens

RPG chairman Harsh Goenka recently created a stir on the Internet.

The business tycoon shared a picture of himself, posing with Benjamin Netanyahu on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday.

In the somewhat grainy picture, both men could be seen posing in dark blue formal shirts and standing close. Behind them, the white and blue Israel flag is seen hanging from the wall.


Sharing the image, Goenka wrote, “Ek ‘bibi’ se ham war mein hain Ek ‘Bibi’ se hamas war mein hai.”

Netanyahu is often fondly referred to as ‘Bibi’. In Urdu, the word ‘bibi’ is another name for wife.

The jovial entrepreneur used two similarly spelled words for an amusing wordplay, although roughly translated his post can be read as “While I am in an argument with my bibi (wife), this Bibi is battling Hamas.”

Goenka’s post gained about 54K views and drew a few eyebrows as the conflict between Israel and Palestine is at an all-time high after the terrorist organisation attacked the former on 7 October 2023.

While some users were encouraging in their replies, many also criticised the billionaire for not speaking against Israel’s counter attack on Gaza, which reportedly killed 11,200 Palestinians.

“Not funny, not funny! Bloody capitalist, absolutely disgusting,” wrote an X user.

“What a pathetic excuse for a human being this man is,” chastised another.

However, some users praised the billionaire. “Both Bibis always win,” tweeted another.

The ex-PM of Israel met several influential leaders from India Inc. in January 2018. The meeting took place at the grand Taj Hotel in Mumbai. The guests included were Goenka, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra, Ajay Piramal, Rahul Bajaj, Ashok Hinduja, Atul Punj and Chanda Kochhar.