Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday hailed women as the “greatest force for change” while extending his wishes on International Women’s Day.The Lok Sabha leader of opposition also shared a video capturing his conversation with young female students in Keralam.“The conversation with young students in Kerala was truly inspiring. Their confidence and determination to pursue their dreams show that women are the greatest force for change,” Gandhi, a former Lok Sabha MP from the state’s Wayanad seat, wrote in the post.The video showed Gandhi entering what appeared to be a school canteen and taking a seat at a table where several female students were gathered.One of the girls told him that, despite the number of women achievers India produces, she feels it is still “shameful” to be a woman in Indian society.He disagreed with her view and cited the example of legendary athlete PT Usha, who hails from Keralam.“What is wrong with running like a girl? What about PT Usha? She’s done pretty well. All this is happening because you are used to living in a male world, and already the male world is unfair to you. They’re making the rules. They’re saying what’s good and bad. You should make the rules. You should not be ashamed of being a woman,” the Congress’ former president said.He then recalled how in his own family, he was “outnumbered” by women, describing his grandmother, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, as the “boss of the family.”“Women are generally more intelligent than men, for the most part. Men are in a hurry, and they get blinded by silly things. Women think longer term—they don’t apply direct power, they apply indirect power. That’s more effective,” he added.Gandhi then asked what each of them want to be in future. He got a variety of answers, including one student who wanted to pursue research in medical physics, which she chose because she couldn’t opt for MBBS.He also expressed his support for campus politics, saying people should have some sense of what politics is.One student asked what change Gandhi would like to see in India in the next 10 years and how it could be achieved. The Raebareli MP replied that he would want all young people in India to do what they want, and not what others want them to do.“The only real thing you should do is to discover your uniqueness,” he stated.The video ended with students and canteen staff taking pictures with the politician.
