Rahul Gandhi in US on his four-day visit to the US, Rahul Gandhi emphasised the importance of focusing on significant political issues and said how his Bharat Jodo Yatra introduced the idea of love in politics.
Rahul Gandhi, while engaging with students at the University of Texas, Dallas, in the United States, discussed his role as the Leader of the Opposition in the Indian Lok Sabha.
During his first trip abroad as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha to the United States of America, Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said that following the Lok Sabha election results earlier this year, people’s fear of the BJP had vanished. He also said people realised they would not tolerate attacks on the Constitution, religions, and states.
Speaking in Dallas to the Indian diaspora, Gandhi said, “What people understood in the election clearly; and I saw it happen When I would hold up the Constitution in this manner, people grasped the essence of my message.They were saying the BJP is attacking our traditions, languages, states, and histories. And most importantly, what they understood was that anybody who is attacking our Constitution is also attacking our religious tradition. That is why, in my first speech in Parliament, you must have noticed, when I described Abhay Mudra – the fact that it (hand) is the symbol of fearlessness and that it is present in every Indian religion,” he said.
“Each Indian religion depicts its figures uniquely: Guru Nanak ji holds his hand in one way, while Shiva holds his in another.” In every Indian religion, the hand is the symbol of fearlessness. When I was saying this, the BJP couldn’t stand it. They don’t understand. And we are going to make them understand,” Gandhi said.
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“The other thing that happened was very beautiful. In fact, I was amazed that it happened so quickly. The fear of the BJP vanished, and disappeared. Within minutes of the election results, nobody in India was scared of the BJP or the prime minister (Narendra Modi). These are huge achievements of the people of India who realised that we do not accept an attack on the Constitution, religions, and states,” he added.
Gandhi is on a four-day unofficial trip to the US during which he will interact with the members of the Indian diaspora and the youth, with stops in Dallas, Texas and Washington DC. He also plans to meet lawmakers and senior officials of the US government during his visit to Washington DC beginning Monday.
Mentioning the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Gandhi said the organisation believes that India is one idea, and “we believe that India is a multiplicity of ideas”.
“We believe that everybody should be allowed to participate. We believe that everybody should be allowed to dream. Everybody should be given space regardless of their caste, language, religion, tradition and history. This is the fight. And the fight was crystalised in the elections. When millions in India clearly understood that the prime minister of India is attacking the Constitution of India,” said Gandhi.
Talking about the role of the LoP, he said, “I believe my role is injecting the values of love, respect and humility in Indian politics. I think what is missing in our political system, across parties, is love, respect, and humility. Love to all human beings.”
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“We started here with the Indian national anthem. While it was playing, I was thinking to myself this song mentions all our states, and it mentions them all equally… The song basically describes India as a Union of states – very much like the United States,” said Gandhi.
Addressing students at the University of Texas, Gandhi said that “listening is much more important than speaking”.
“Listening is fundamental, and then understanding the deeper dynamics… you are raising fundamental issues. You don’t go raising every single issue. You focus on important issues and fight for them. You choose your battles much more carefully. A very good definition of political strategy or business strategy is to understand clearly what you don’t want to do,” he said.
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Bharat Jodo Yatra and ‘love in politics’
Talking about his Bharat Jodo Yatra, Gandhi said it introduced the idea of love in politics for the first time in the country, “It (Bharat Jodo Yatra) fundamentally changed the way I look at my work. It completely changed how I view our politics and our people. To me, the most powerful thing that happened organically, was that we introduced certainly for the first time in India, possibly for the first time in many many countries. In most countries, you wouldn’t find the word ‘love’ in the discourse… And it amazed me how that idea has worked.”
The Yatra, which covered 75 districts and 76 Lok Sabha constituencies spread across 12 states and two Union Territories (UTs) over 145 days, completed its second anniversary on Saturday.
“During the Yatra,” he said, “I was not communicating as Rahul, I was communicating as the Yatra was communicating. It took me a little while to figure this out… Suddenly, it started to occur to me that everything coming out of my mouth was actually what people had said to me. The most beautiful example of this was the slogan that came: ‘Nafrat ke bazaar mein mohabbat ki dukan khol rahe hain (opening a shop of love in the market of hate)’.”
“The job of the politician is to listen to sentiments, to understand sentiments deeply and give it to other people… The idea is what is the country saying, what is the country feeling,” he added.
‘India, US facing unemployment while China dominating global production’ .Speaking on the concerns of employment, the Congress MP said that India, the US and other countries in the West are facing the problem of unemployment while China isn’t as it is dominating global production.
Addressing employment issues, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi pointed out that while countries like India, the US, and others in the West struggle with unemployment, China remains unaffected due to its dominance in global production.
Gandhi highlighted that “The West is grappling with employment challenges, and India is no exception. However, many nations, including China and Vietnam, are not facing such issues.” He elaborated that in the mid-20th century, the US was a global production hub for everything from cars to washing machines and TVs. Over time, production shifted first to Korea and Japan, and then to China, which now leads global production.
He criticized the West, including America, Europe, and India, for abandoning manufacturing in favor of consumption, leaving production to countries like China, Vietnam, and Bangladesh. “The act of production creates jobs. We need to focus on production and not just consumption. India should not resign itself to being excluded from manufacturing,” Gandhi stressed.
Emphasizing the importance of revitalizing manufacturing in India, he warned that neglecting this sector would lead to increased unemployment and social issues. “If we continue to disregard manufacturing, we will face severe social problems, and the political polarization we see today will worsen,” he added.
Gandhi also addressed concerns about the Indian education system, stating, “There is no shortage of skills in India; rather, there is a lack of respect for skilled individuals.” He advocated for connecting the education system with the business sector through vocational training to bridge the employability gap.
Confident in India’s potential to compete with China, he noted, “States like Tamil Nadu, Pune, and Maharashtra have demonstrated success in production. However, this needs to be scaled up and coordinated more effectively.”
Gandhi arrived in Dallas on Saturday night, where he was greeted by numerous members of the Indian-American community, including senior Congress leader Sam Pitroda and Mohinder Gilzian, president of the Indian National Overseas Congress, USA.