Rahul Gandhi emphasised that a democratic system is essential for different traditions, customs, ideas, and religious beliefs to thrive in a diverse society. Congress MP and Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday hit out at the NDA-led central government, saying that the “attack on democracy” poses a major risk to India. Gandhi was speaking at an event at the EIA University in Colombia. Highlighting the importance of a democratic system in a diverse nation, he said that India faces “structural flaws.”
“India has strong capabilities in areas like engineering and healthcare, so I am very optimistic about the country. But at the same time, there are also flaws in the structure that India has to correct. The biggest challenge is the attack on democracy taking place in India,” news agency ANI quoted Gandhi as saying.
‘Major risk’ on India
The Congress leader emphasised that a democratic system is essential for different traditions, customs, and ideas, including religious beliefs, to thrive in diversity. However, the very democratic system in India is under attack, Gandhi said, terming it a “major risk” or threat. The Lok Sabha LoP further said, “India has multiple religions, traditions, and languages — in fact, the country is essentially a conversation between all these people and cultures. Different traditions, religions, and ideas require space, and the best method for creating that space is the democratic system.”
“Currently, there is a wholesale attack on this democratic system, and that is a major risk. Another big risk is the tension between different conceptions in parts of the country. With 16-17 major languages and many religions, it is crucial to allow these diverse traditions to thrive and give them the space they need,” he added.
‘Cowardice’: Rahul on BJP-RSS ideology
Gandhi also attacked the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s partnership, saying “cowardice” was at the heart of their ideology. “This is the nature of BJP-RSS. If you notice a statement of the foreign minister, he said, ‘China is much more powerful than us. How can I pick a fight with them?’ At the heart of the ideology is cowardice,” the Congress MP said. Gandhi cited an incident from Vinayak Damodar Savarkar’s book, “he and his friends beat up a Muslim man and felt happy about it”.
In reference to this incident, Gandhi said that the Sangh’s ideology is to “beat up weak people” and run away from those who are stronger than them. “In his book, Savarkar has written that once he and his few friends beat up a Muslim man, and they felt very happy that day. If five people beat up a single individual, which makes one of them happy, it is cowardice. This is RSS ideology, to beat weak people,” Rahul Gandhi said at the event in Colombia. Rahul Gandhi had earlier blamed the recent violent protests in Ladakh on the ruling BJP and its ideological parent, the RSS. He alleged that the people of Ladakh and their culture were under attack by the BJP-RSS combine.
“Ladakhis asked for a voice. The BJP responded by killing four young men and jailing Sonam Wangchuk,” the Congress leader said in a post on X. “Stop the killing. Stop the violence. Stop the intimidation. Give Ladakh a voice. Give them the 6th Schedule,” he added. Gandhi has also been targeting the Centre with his “vote chori” allegations, a claim made amid the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll in poll-bound Bihar.
