Magician out of tricks, youth sees through him: Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said the “magician” has run out of tricks and young India can now see through him, as he attacked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Government over the women’s reservation issue.

Gandhi met a group of young women from Delhi University and said the more the women of India are empowered, the better it is for the country.

In a freewheeling interaction, where he answered several queries from students, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said that Gen Z women will lead the way for the country and it is everyone’s duty to open every door for them. Really enjoyed meeting the young women from Gargi College and Delhi University.

“Two things are clear: The magician has run out of tricks. Young India can see right through him, and Gen Z is our future and Gen Z women will lead the way. It is our duty to open every door for them,” the Congress leader said in a post on X. “The future of our country is in safe hands,” he said.

Gandhi had targeted Prime Minister Modi during the debate in the Lok Sabha on the women’s reservation bill, calling him a “magician”, but the Congress leader’s remark was later expunged from records.

The Congress leader also expressed his bias in favour of empowering women, saying they are more effective than men. He lauded BSP chief Mayawati and former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalitha for their role in their respective States.

Gandhi also attacked the RSS during the conversation and dubbed it as the “bureaucracy of the Maharajah,” who supported the British Raj.

On the women’s reservation bill, the former Congress chief said the BJP wanted to bring delimitation through it, which could have led to a “war between the South and the North”.

“They suddenly brought this bill and we wanted them to give one-third of the 543 existing seats to women, but they did not do that. Actually, this is not the women’s bill. It is very simple, it is delimitation,” he said.

“What they want to do is reduce the number of seats in southern States and increase them in the northern Indian States. But, this is a problem... it is a very dangerous thing... if you change the number of seats in India without very carefully taking into account the consequences, you will risk war between the South and the North,” Gandhi said.

Speaking about the BSP chief’s achievements, Gandhi noted, “I am an opponent of hers, but I think Mayawati ji played a very important role in UP politics.”

“I have problems with a lot of the stuff she did. I have problems with how she took the movement. But I think she was very brave and quite effective, until she gave up. But that is a different issue. I think she fundamentally changed the politics of Uttar Pradesh for many years.

“I think Jayalalitha ji in Tamil Nadu -- again, we partnered with her -- was a phenomenal leader,” he said while lauding the AIADMK leader’s role.

Asked what he would do if his party came to power, Gandhi said, “Political participation; participation in corporate India; participation of women in India’s institutions. Forcibly putting women inside all these structures.”

To another question on why political parties consider empowering women as symbolism, he said, “True, but our party does so less.”

“For me, both males and females should have equal space. And I actually believe from experience that the effectiveness and strength of women is better than that of males. They are more effective.

“I feel that the more you empower in India, the better it is. I am more biased towards empowering women than I am towards men,” Gandhi said.

He recalled how women have been politically empowered by the panchayati raj system, which was brought by the Congress.

He said the women’s reservation bill was passed in 2023 and the entire Opposition supported it, but the BJP then said it would not be enforced for 10 years.

Attacking the RSS, Gandhi said, “The RSS was actually the bureaucracy of the Maharaja. The RSS was the bureaucracy of the British... Colonialism always had partners, and the partners were the Maharajahs and the bureaucracy.”

Later in another post on YouTube, Gandhi shared the video of his interaction and said, “Met the Gen Z students of Delhi University and Gargi College. Clear thinking, strong articulation and the confidence to put across their thoughts unhesitatingly, was their identity.”

“Their views on the Women’s Reservation Bill were also clear - this is not an issue about women’s empowerment, but a means to alter the power dynamics through delimitation.

“Without any hesitation, they said they reject the politics of violence, hatred and patriarchy. For them, politics is not division, but unity, equality and respect,” he said.

Gandhi also said that these students clearly understand what India’s women want - equality, safety, opportunity and participation in every field.

He said the exchange of thoughts was straightforward, fun and engaging, where everyone shared their experiences and learnings.