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‘India’s Democracy Under Severe Assault’: Rahul Gandhi Tears Into BJP, RSS In Oslo Speech

September 22, 2023
Bharat Times

In yet another attack at the BJP-led Central government, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has alleged that India’s democracy is under “severe assault”, adding that many people are fighting the said “attack”. He claimed that “everything changed” with respect to democracy in India after Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014. Gandhi said that at present, there is a “weakening democracy” in India with large parts of the population not allowed to speak. 

” The first thing one has to realize when thinking about India is that, until 2014, democracy in India was about a set of political parties fighting each other. Neutral institutions, free and fair elections, access to media for everybody, and access to financial resources for everybody were the norms,” the Congress MP said during an interaction at the University of Oslo in Norway. 

 

‘Many Fighting Attack On Our Democratic Structure’ 

Rahul Gandhi told the gathering at the interaction that Indian democratic structures are under attack and many are fighting the same, adding “we will win the fight”. 

“When that defence stops, if ever, then I’ll say India is not a democracy anymore. However, there are still so many people who are fighting the attack on our democratic structure. The fight is not over and I think we will win the fight,” he said.  

The videos of his interaction, which took place earlier this month, have been released by the party on the official X handle. 

Claiming that institutions in India have been influenced by the RSS, Gandhi said that agencies like CBI, ED and Income Tax are being “weaponised”, a stance that the entire opposition has been taking for a long time. 

“In 2014, everything changed completely. We no longer fight against a political party; the entire game has changed. Institutions have been influenced by the RSS. Agencies like the CBI, ED, and Income Tax have been weaponized,” he said. 

They target those who resist the ideology of the BJP. So, we are no longer engaged in a regular political contest. We are actually fighting the architecture of the Indian state, which means that the techniques we used earlier, like interviews and conversations, are no longer available to us,” Gandhi further said. 

Backing his earlier statements that people are not allowed to speak in India, the Congress leader said that India is the largest democracy, and that’s true. “However, for me, a democracy where you are not allowed to express your voice, where you are not allowed to say how you feel, and where a large number of people are not given opportunities is a weakened democracy”. 

He said that he decided to walk for 4000 km during ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ because no other option was left to reach out to the people of the country.  

“What we found that the old tools don’t work. A lot of people asked me why you walked 4,000 km but it was the only option left for us…If you had asked me in 2005 or even 2012, If I would be walking from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, I would have said ‘no way’. But it became a political necessity for us,” he said. 

“We have realised that when democracy is under attack and voice is under attack then only real way to combat that is through action, through physically going and meeting people. That is the only instrument that is left for the opposition,” he claimed, as quoted by PTI. 

 

‘I Fight For Ideology Of Gandhi, Gautam Buddha, Guru Nanak’

Reiterating that India is under attack by the ideology of RSS, Gandhi said that his party is an idea and “one of the central visions for India’s people. That is not weak at all. The Congress party is evolving.” 

“I defend a particular ideology in my country. It is the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi, Gautam Buddha and Guru Nanak; I fight for it. Whether I become the leader or don’t become the leader is secondary,” he said. 

He added that there is an ideological struggle for the future of India, and “it’s our responsibility to defend our position, and that’s what I do”. He said the idea of Congress can be strengthened by defending it across the country. 

 

Rahul Gandhi On India Vs Bharat Row 

Amid the ongoing India versus Bharat debate, Rahul Gandhi said that the mega opposition alliance “will” change its name if the name of the country is changed from India to Bharat. He was referring to the ongoing developments where the Centre used ‘Bharat’ instead of ‘India’ on many occasions. The opposition is claiming that the change has come due to the naming of the opposition bloc as I.N.D.I.A. 

“I don’t believe that any other political formation, by simply choosing their name, has succeeded in making the incumbent change the name of the country. That’s a world record,” he said evoking peals of laughter from the audience. 

“If and when he does change the name, we will also change our name. Then, he will have to change the name again,” he added. 

Mentioning that every person in I.N.D.I.A coalition has agreed that “we’ll not tolerate the murder of Indian democracy”. 

“Firstly, we will not let the RSS capture our institutions. Secondly, we believe the level of inequality generated in India—the monopoly of 2-3 business houses; the 200+ million people gone into poverty into past 9 years—is not acceptable,” he added. “Thirdly, we all agree that govt must spend and involve itself more on healthcare and education,” Gandhi further said. 

 

Three Things I.N.D.I.A Bloc Will Do If Comes To Power 

The former Congress president also highlighted the priorities of the I.N.D.I.A block if it comes to power. 

He said that the alliance would reclaim the democratic tradition of India, focus on the manufacturing prowess of the country and work on inclusion.  

“1. We will reclaim the democratic tradition of India. We will bring back the institutions that are neutral and belong to the people of India. We’ll make sure they are not attacked or pressurised. 

2. For us to not manufacture in a country of 1.4 billion is not an option or we’ll have such massive levels of unemployment and anger which will make our economy unsustainable. Can we offer an alternative vision to compete with the manufacturing prowess of China but in a way that’s not coercive, but one with political, economic and social freedoms. 

3. There are large parts of India that are not included in its growth story such as the tribals, dalits, minorities, etc. and India won’t be successful without their inclusion, ” he said. 

‘Can’t Talk To Students In India Like I Do In US, France’ 

In another major claim, Rahul Gandhi said that he cannot hold discussions with students in India as he does in the US and France. He said that he and many other opposition leaders are not allowed to enter universities in India. 

“You have seen me talking to students in the US, and in France, but I can’t do that in India. I am physically not allowed to enter Indian universities, as are most of our opposition leaders. If we try to go into a university, we find that the vice chancellor is from the RSS and he tells us that discussion is not acceptable inside Indian universities,” Gandhi alleged, as quoted by PTI. 

“I have got 24 cases on me, I have been interrogated for 55 hours, I have been given a two-year jail sentence, for the first time in India, someone has been given a maximum sentence for criminal defamation,” he said.