Rahul woos Dalits in UP

'RSS ideology Manuwadi'

Looking to revive his party in politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday wooed the Dalits saying that his party had always favoured their ‘development’ and ‘empowerment’ even as he slammed the RSS for what he alleged was ‘imposition’ its ‘Manuwadi ideology’ in educational institutions.

Speaking at a Dalit Conclave organised by the state Congress here, Rahul attacked Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati and said that she had done nothing for the Dalits and had ‘misused’ Kanshiram’s legacy.

“Mayawati has not done anything for the development of Dalits. Dalit leadership was not developed under her leadership. We want to empower them, we want to give them share in power,” the Congress leader said.

Rahul said that Congress wanted to develop Dalit leadership.
“The plight of the Dalit community will change if Congress comes to power in the state,” he added.

Extolling Dalit ideologue B R Ambedkar, the Congress leader said that his party shared the ideology of Ambedkar unlike Mayawati. He also raked up the suicide of Hyderabad University student Rohith Vemula and blamed the BJP lead NDA government at the centre for the same.

Rahul also targeted the RSS and BJP and accused them of suppressing the voices of dissent.

“On the one hand we have a constitution given to us by Ambedkar and Congress. It gives equal opportunity to all. And on the other there is RSS’s Manuwadi ideology,” he said.

Rahul exuded confidence that the Congress would form the next government in UP after next year’s Assembly elections.

Congress had managed to win only two seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The party leaders here felt that it could gain electorally if it was able to wean away Dalits from Mayawati’s fold.