PM Modi Creating Vision Of India That Excludes Masses, Says Rahul Gandhi

Rahul Gandhi at the University of Cambridge said that it is unfair to leave out huge chunks of the population and goes against the idea of India.

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Monday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is creating a vision of India that excludes a large chunk of the country’s population. He termed it unfair and against the idea of India during his interaction with students at the University of Cambridge in London. In the event titled 'India at 75' at Corpus Christi College, the Congress leader spoke on various topics ranging from Hindu nationalism to his family's role within the Congress Party and efforts to mobilise the people of the country.

"I have a problem if anybody has a vision for India that excludes people, I don't care who's being excluded. I have a problem with it because it is completely unfair, it ignores that there is tremendous energy in the people being excluded and I have a problem with it because that's not what India is, said Gandhi, in response to a question about secularism in India.

"I think it goes beyond secularism. You have to include every single person with compassion. Mr Modi is constructing a vision of India where he's leaving out huge chunks of our population. And, that's not a vision of India, that's a vision of a part of India, he added.

When asked about how Congress plans to fight against the forces of Hindu nationalism, Gandhi declared that he did not agree with the term itself. He said that there was nothing Hindu or nationalist about it. 

“I think you'll have to think of a new name for them but they're certainly not Hindu. And, I have studied Hinduism in enough detail to tell you that there's absolutely nothing Hindu about wanting to murder people and beat people up”, he said.

He said his problem is with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Prime Minister that they are “fiddling with the foundational structure of India”.

“When you play the politics of polarisation, when you isolate and demonise 200 million people, you're doing something extremely dangerous and you're doing something that is fundamentally against the idea of India”, he said.

He said that while he is sure PM Modi has done good things, he doesn’t accept attacking the idea of India. 

Gandhi also said his party is working on plans to hold padayatras, meet people and actively mobilise them from October-November after the Congress presidential elections in August.

On being asked if the party needs leadership outside the Gandhi family, Rahul said, "That's for the Congress party to decide. There's a presidential election, the party has to decide".

The event, organised by the School of the Humanities and Social Science at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge University, as part of a series of events celebrating the 75th year of Indian independence, marked the conclusion of Gandhi's UK tour which began last week.