Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said that he wanted to thank Bharatiya Janta Party and RSS for targeting the Bharat Jodo Yatra. Gandhi said that the more BJP and RSS target the movement, the more it helps in continuing with the Yatra.
He said that he began the Bharat Jodo Yatra as any ordinary movement from Kanyakumari to Kashmir but slowly he understood that this yatra has voice and feelings.
"When I started this, I just took it as an ordinary yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. Slowly we understood that this yatra has a voice & feelings. I want to thank people from BJP & RSS, because the more they target us, it helps us in some way or the other," ANI quoted Rahul Gandhi as saying.
Rahul Gandhi said that he considers BJP as his Guru to understand "what is not to be done".
"I want them (BJP) to attack us aggressively, this will help Congress party understand its ideology. I consider them (BJP) as my Guru, they are showing me the way and training me on what is not to be done," he said.
Gandhi said that the opposition has to present an effective stand against the BJP and if that happens, it will be difficult for the BJP to win the elections.
"If opposition stands effectively with a vision, what I am hearing from the ground, it will become very difficult for BJP to win the elections. But the opposition has to coordinate properly & the opposition has to go to the people with an alternative vision," he said.
Answering the question that if Yatra is opened to leaders of other parties as well, he said that Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati want "mohabbat ka Hindustan" and that the doors are open for everyone.
"The doors of Bharat Jodo Yatra are open for everyone, we are not going to stop anyone from joining us. Akhilesh ji, Mayawati ji and others want "mohabbat ka Hindustan" and there is some relation of ideology between us," he said, reported ANI.
The former Congress president said that the Bharat Jodo Yatra has been successful so far and that money has been spent to malign his image.
Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, he said that the government is forcing him to travel in a bullet-proof vehicle, adding that Yatra cannot happen in a bullet-proof vehicle.
Government Shouldn't Hide Behind Armed Forces: Rahul Gandhi
Rahul Gandhi also said, "When I attack the government, they say I am attacking Army, government should own up its mistakes and not hide behind armed forces."
Speaking on China, he said "China, and Pakistan planning something big; Doklam, Tawang preparation is for something big."
Hitting out at the government, he said that the government's foreign policy is event-based and confused.