Violence against women is a hidden issue in India: Rahul in London

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, during an interaction with the Indian diaspora in London, said that he found during the Bharat Jodo Yatra that the main issues in the country are price rise, unemployment and violence against women and third is a hidden issue.

Speaking at an interaction here on Sunday, Rahul Gandhi said, "I was allowed to speak at the Cambridge University to give a talk there, on Indian politics and global politics, which I did, and it's quite a nice atmosphere there. I was thinking, while I was talking there, that it's quite strange that an Indian politican, a leader can give a speech at Cambridge University, and Harvard University but he can't give a talk in a university of India."

Attacking the centre, Rahul Gandhi alleged that the Opposition is not allowed to raise issues in Parliament.

"The reason is our government simply does not allow any idea of the Opposition, any concept of the Opposition, to be discussed. Same happens in the Parliament House, when there are important things we have to talk about, Demonetisation, GST, the fact that Chinese were sitting inside our territory. When we try to raise these questions, we are not allowed to raise them in the house," he said. He added, "It's a fact, it's shameful, but it's true, and this is not the India that all of us are used to. Our country is an open country where we pride ourselves on intelligence, respect each other's opinion, listen to each other. And that narrative has been destroyed." Rahul Gandhi said that the idea behind the Bharat Jodo Yatra was to directly go to the public.

"The reason we are forced to walk across India, the Bharat Jodo Yatra, was that all the institutions that protect the democracy, that allow the people to speak, that allow an expression of voice are captured by the BJP. And so we decided that a good way to think about it, a good way to act would be to go directly to the people of India. And do what used to be a tradition. The Yatra is not just a walk across the country," he said.

The Congress leader said, "Many great people in India have gone on yatra, the most famous yatra was done by the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi. Vivekananda ji apparently walked across the country. Guru Nanak Ji walked across the country. So there's a list of people, who used this idea of yatra. And this yatra is actually an introspection, an attempt to listen to the people, and an attempt to listen to the voice of the people." Talking about the yatra, Rahul Gandhi said, price rise, unemployment and violence against women are the main issues in the country.

"So it was a wonderful experience for me, we started from Kanyakumari, and went all the way to Kashmir, thousands of kilometres in the heat, in rain, in the snow. And we got to understand our country in great detail, we spoke to thousands and thousands of people, farmers, and students like you. We met youngsters, and the main issue, was violence, price rise, and the violence the Indian women face," Rahul Gandhi said.

The Wayanad MP added, "The third one is a hidden issue, and no one talks about it, but when you walk across India and talk to people, these were the three main issues that you get. Most women complaining about the violence they are facing, the fact that they are worried to walk on the streets, huge amount of unemployment, price rise and concentration of wealth."