Rahul Gandhi says “All will come together in Lok Sabha elections”; attacks BJP on governance

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday, October 5 said regardless of the party’s alliance with BSP not working out in upcoming assembly elections in states, he feels all will come together in the Lok Sabha elections.

Rahul Gandhi was delivering the keynote address at the Hindustan Times’ Leadership Summit in New Delhi.

Hindustan Times reported the Congress President as saying, “I don't see the (Congress) alliance with BSP not working out impacting us in elections. We feel all of us will come together in national election It is a two stage process. First we get together to defeat the BJP. Second, once election are over, we decide who is going to be the Prime Minister.”

Rahul Gandhi also attacked the Narendra Modi Government on several frontsHere follow his quotes on several issues, as reported by Hindustan Times:

Rahul Gandhi on importance of engaging India in conversation

“India has been imagined and reimagined for centuries. It was imagined that there will be no discrimination. What we see in India today is defaming the imagination. A single, suffocating ideology is being imposed upon 1.2 billion Indians.”

“Aspiration is turning into anger. People in power claim monopoly over knowledge. They do not hear you. What is a country if it's not about conversation. India is a partnership between all its peoples. We don't believe in binaries. We must re-imagine that India where the mind is without fear.”

“Farmers are not opposed to industry. But you will have to start the conversation. You will have to defuse the anger that is taking place: Even though farmers and industry have to work together, that conversation is not happening today. ."

“We trust people, we know knowledge lies with people, we want to listen, but they do not believe in this. I attempted conversation, but I was snubbed. I am trying to listen more. That is my leadership evolution. India desperately needs listening, understanding.”

Rahul Gandhi on BJP, RSS and institutions

“The ideological centre that is fighting the BJP can only be the Congress. If the Congress was to build its cadre like the BJP, it would become the BJP. We do not want a cadre system like RSS. Idea of the RSS’ cadre system is to capture institutions. We are happy without a cadre system.”

“Reimagining India for the BJP, RSS is to shut the imaginations of 1.3 billion Indians. The idea of the RSS is to take over all institutions in the country. It is the nature of strong organisations to subvert institutions. But Congress doesn’t have this kind of design. We believe institutions belong to India and not to our party. Tell me the last institution the Indian government has built?”

“There is a difference between Hindutva and Hinduism. Hindutva is an ideology and Hinduism is a philosophy.”

“I believe BJP MLAs and MPs have to use their funds for RSS run schools.”

Rahul Gandhi on governance

“There are two central problems. One is there are no jobs. Open up small, medium businesses. But the govt is attacking them. The government has gone to war with the people. I will strengthen the small and medium enterprise. I will make farmers feel they are important. I will build a low cost-high quality medical and education infrastructure.”

“I don't think you can develop India if you are pro-poor or pro-business. I don't view the world in silos. I view it as about partnerships.”

“Narendra Modi⁩ can not keep blaming us for everything when he is in power. Tell us why NPA rose from ₹2 lakh crore to ₹lakh crore. Tell us why job rate is lowest in 20 years.”

“Demonetisation was a ridiculous thing to do. Demonetisation wiped out 2% of the GDP. We had a different concept of the GST, but the government did not listen to us.”

“Make In India, Swachh India—what have been these slogans translated into?"

“The idea of Aadhaar was to support people, make their lives simple. Now it has become a tool for monitoring them.”

“Building more AIIMS is important, but reimagining AIIMS like institution is more important.”

Rahul Gandhi on foreign policy

“You cannot disconnect what's happening in the world with what's happening in the country. Foreign policy has no strategic thought. You do something on Doklam—then you do something else. Nepal is gone, Maldives is gone. Nepal went from being really excited about Prime Minister Modi to hating him. Pakistan has structural problem, but there is lot of room for conversation with Nepal, Sri Lanka and others. China is rising quickly and US is super power. India has to navigate between these two. It cannot happen with tactical foreign policy.”

Rahul Gandhi on himself

“I have been going to temples, gurdwaras, mosques for years. Suddenly it has become publicised. I guess BJP doesn't like it. It infuriates them. BJP feels only they can go to temples.”

“I have my mother, my sister, my friends. I have no one special person in my life,” [when asked if there is any special person in his life].