Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday took his battle against the BJP to the camp of its ideological mentor — the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
The setting was the national convention of the National Students Union of India (NSUI) where young workers lustily cheered Rahul to a point that he had to urge them several times to calm down.
Rahul immediately drew contrasts in the functioning of the Congress and that of the RSS, a comparison that struck a chord with the NSUI activists.
“I used to feel such meetings (like the NSUI convention) should be disciplined. But it took me 10 years to understand that in this very disorder lies the strength of the Congress,” the 44-year-old leader said in a brief speech at the valedictory session of the two-day function.
“Outsiders feel there is disorder in the Congress. But this is how we listen to different voices and views and find solutions to complex issues,” he added.
Drawing comparisons with the functioning of the RSS, he said everyone praises the organisation for its discipline. “But discipline is just a ruse to murder individuality. Look at the RSS shakha (branch). They stand in a straight line. Any person striking a discordant note is at the receiving end,” he said.
“Look anywhere. Only one person knows everything. On farmers’ issues, one person has complete knowledge, education only one person knows. For that matter, even in matters related to clothes only one person knows everything,” Rahul said in remarks dripping with sarcasm. On the contrary, there is a constant internal dialogue within the Congress, he said.
“They have stopped internal dialogue (in the RSS). Now they want to stop the internal dialogue across India,” the Congress leader said.
“But, these shakha-going people do not understand the simple fact that this is how the country is. BJP wants to run this country like a shakha… wherever they want to bring order of the shakha, you take the disorder of the Congress party,” Rahul said exhorting NSUI activists to stand up to the RSS as it makes efforts to impose its ideology.
He said the Modi government was committing one mistake after another and had made the Congress’ job as Opposition a lot easier.