Reiterating his charge that the Modi government is stifling dissent and threatening those who don’t agree with its ideology, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said the youth should ask questions without being scared to protect the country.
“Democracy is what gives India its voice, but it is under attack. I have been talking about the attack on our democratic foundations. India is a democratic country. But today, our democratic system is under attack. Democracy is voice. So, democracy is the idea that you should have a voice, I should have a voice, all these people (on the dais) should have a voice and all those children in front of us should have a voice. I have been saying that our democratic structure is under attack by those in government,” he said in response to a question during an interaction with students of the St Thomas English School at Gudalur in The Nilgiris.
The Congress leader was participating in the golden jubilee celebrations of the school, where he had stayed during his Bharat Jodo Yatra. Then he had promised to visit the school later on. After a brief speech, he interacted with the students braving the light rain and drizzle.
“Democracy is under attack by the people who are actually running the government. They are attacking our Election Commission. They are attacking our different institutions. They are attacking people who don’t agree with the ideology. So, for that we need young people like you who are brave, who are confident and who are not scared of asking questions,” was his response to the questioner, a girl student.
Recalling his recent posts, she asked what the youth, students, and the GenZee should do to really protect the country and its people. While other students had questions about his school life, the girl, who posed this, brought the politician in as the Congress leader.
On bringing equality and equal opportunity through education, Gandhi called for strengthening public-funded education through enhanced budgetary allocation. “Education should not be privatised. We need a good education system and strengthen our manufacturing sector to provide employment to our students,” he added.
On a question on the threat to the Aravalli mountain range, he stressed the need to balance development with environmental protection. “It is very important that we don’t sacrifice our environment for development. We need to think about development almost in partnership with our environment. If you destroy our environment we cannot have development. We have to be sensitive to our environment, to the beautiful hills, and water if we actually want development. But, what is happening in the Aravallis is completely unleashed greed. People are short sighted and greedy. We need balance,” he explained.
Being the last questioner, the boy asked Gandhi whether he would wish everyone a Happy Pongal in Tamil to which the Congress leader readily obliged. ‘Iniya Pongal Vazhthukkal’ he repeated after the student said the greetings and the audience turned rapturous.
Former Union Minister The Nilgiris MP, A Raja and TNCC president K Selvaperunthagai were among those who took part in the event.