In London, Rahul Gandhi Gets Invaluable Lesson From Life Of Indira Gandhi Over His Cambridge Remark

Rahul Gandhi's earlier comments at Cambridge University that Indian democracy is under attack and several politicians, including himself, are under surveillance, invited sharp reactions from the BJP that accused him of maligning the country's image on foreign soil after facing successive electoral setbacks.

Gandhi is in London as part of a week-long visit to the UK for a lecture as visiting fellow at the University of Cambridge and is scheduled to interact with the Indian diaspora on Sunday.

Rahul Gandhi, who is in the United Kingdom, has been facing criticism from the BJP over his various statements. The BJP has accused him of maligning India's image abroad. The BJP's criticism came after Rahul Gandhi claimed that democracy in India is under attack. He also praised China during his lecture at Cambridge University. Talking to reporters at an India Insights event organised by the Indian Journalists' Association (IJA) on Saturday evening, Rahul Gandhi again alleged that the structures of Indian democracy are under "brutal attack" and there is a full-scale assault on the institutions of the country.

The Opposition leader, who is in London as part of a UK tour, told reporters here that there are conversations ongoing within the Opposition to unite around an alternative vision for the country and act upon an "undercurrent of anger" over pressing issues such as unemployment, price rise, the concentration of wealth and violence against women.

However, Gandhi was given an invaluable lesson by a veteran journalist during the event. The journalist, who has now settled in the United Kingdom, told Rahul Gandhi, "I knew your grandmother Mrs Indira Gandhi....Mrs Gandhi, your grandmother, was like an elder sister to me. She was a wonderful woman. When she came here after being imprisoned by Murarji Desai, in a press conference in London, a journalist asked her, 'What is your experience in prison in India?' And she said, 'I don't want to talk anything bad about India in this conference.' Now, you are being constantly attacked in the Indian media for your Cambridge Lecture. I hope that you will at least take some lesson from what Mrs Indira Gandhi said."

Time Stamp: Watch From 47.10 Minutes Onward

Earlier, during the event, Rahul Gandhi expressed regret that democratic parts of the world, including the US and Europe, have failed to notice that a "large chunk of democracy has come undone".

"The BJP wants India to be silent. They want it to be quiet because they want to be able to take what is India's and give it to their close friends. That's the idea, to distract the population and then hand over India's wealth to three, four, five people," he said.

Gandhi's earlier comments at Cambridge University that Indian democracy is under attack and several politicians, including himself, are under surveillance, invited sharp reactions from the BJP that accused him of maligning the country's image on foreign soil after facing successive electoral setbacks.

"We can understand his hatred towards the Prime Minister, but the conspiracy to malign the country on foreign soil with the help of foreign friends raises questions on the agenda of the Congress," Anurag Thakur, the Information and Broadcasting minister, told reporters in Delhi on Friday.

Thakur said Gandhi was aware of the electoral rout the Congress was facing in the assembly elections and had resorted to levelling allegations from foreign soil.

Gandhi is in London as part of a week-long visit to the UK for a lecture as visiting fellow at the University of Cambridge and is scheduled to interact with the Indian diaspora on Sunday.

He is also being hosted at an event in the House of Commons complex on behalf of the UK Opposition Labour Party and will address the Chatham House think-tank in London on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and wider geopolitical issues before concluding his visit to Britain. (With PTI inputs)