Congress must be, and is, responsive to all communities, assures Rahul Gandhi

Ahead of the OBC Bhaagidari Nyay Sammelan in New Delhi on 25 July, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi admitted that in the last 10–15 years, the Congress "fell short" in responding to the challenges faced by Other Backward Classes. This, he said, opened up space for the BJP to rise.

Addressing the Congress’ Lok Sabha MPs and Telangana leadership at Indira Bhavan, the party headquarters, in New Delhi on 24 July, Gandhi said that moving forward, the party must be responsive to all communities and send a message of fairness. It is the job of the Congress, he said, to take care of every Indian.

“I feel when it came to Dalits, Adivasis, women's issues, the Congress party was on track in the last 10–15 years. But I do feel that the party's understanding of OBC issues and the understanding of the challenges they were facing and the type of actions that the party should have and could have taken... [there] we fell short,” Gandhi said.

He said this is what he feels and many may not agree with him. However, the former Congress chief continued, “I have the feeling that we allowed, we opened up the space for the BJP, because we were not responsive to the aspirations, desires of the OBC people.”

Telangana chief minister A. Revanth Reddy earned special praise from the Congress leader. Gandhi said not only did the state conduct the caste census in the right spirit, but also with a level of competence which is a milestone for social justice in this country.

“This is now going to define how the national caste census is done,” he claimed.

“We can target caste, education, health or anything. No other state in India today has the ability to target development the way Telangana has. It is a social tool, it is also a financial and economic tool. What the BJP does not like is that it is also a political tool,” Gandhi said, adding that when the Congress puts pressure on them, the BJP is forced to listen.

Taking another swipe at the BJP over the English language question, Gandhi said those who run down English should be countered with one, simple question: “Which school or college do your children study in? Do they study in an English-medium school? The answer will always be ‘Yes’.”

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said he is happy that Telangana has accomplished a good task and showed a new direction to the country.

“We will have to do this in every state by force. We have to work fearlessly. We have to strengthen our party and this can be achieved only after getting political power,” Kharge said.