Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been turning heads through his meticulous remarks in his ongoing tour in the United States. The Congress leader earlier this week embarked on his first overseas tour after getting disqualified as a Lok Sabha MP and in his three-city US trip, Rahul Gandhi has been interacting with the Indian diaspora including students where he is speaking about BJP's divisive politics and defeating the saffron party in the 2024 general elections. 

After wrapping up his San Fransisco tour, Rahul Gandhi on Thursday addressed a forum in Washington DC during which he asserted that the Opposition parties in India are united. Speaking at the National Press Club, the Congress leader said that a lot of good work is happening on the ground and divulged that there is a hidden undercurrent building and that the Congress party will surprise the people in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls through its outcome. 

Predicting that the Congress party will perform well in the polls, Rahul Gandhi said, "I think the Congress party will do very well in the next two years. I think it will. I think there is a hidden undercurrent building. I think it (the outcome) will surprise people." Highlighting the outcome of the recently-held assembly polls in Karnataka where Congress secured a thumping victory, the Congress leader cited 'wait and watch'. 

He said, "Wait and watch the next three or four state elections, which is a better indicator of what's going to happen." Responding to a question, Rahul Gandhi asserted that the Opposition in India is well united and said, "I think it's getting more and more united. We are having conversations with all the Opposition. I think quite a lot of good work is happening." 

"It's a complicated discussion because there are spaces where we have competing also with other Opposition (parties). So, it's a little bit of give and take as required. But I'm confident that that will happen", he affirmed. Responding to a question about the growing popularity of Prime Minister Modi, Rahul Gandhi said, "There is a definite capture of the institutions of the country. There's a definite capture of the press in the country. I am not convinced that you know, I don't believe everything I hear." 

Speaking about what the Congress party would do to ensure the rights of minorities in India if it comes to power, the Congress leader said, "India has a very robust system already in place, that system has been weakened. You have to have an independent set of institutions that are not pressurized and controlled. And that's been the norm in India. This is an aberration that is taking place in India. If you say that if Congress came to power that they could quickly be restored, quickly." 

While responding to a question about weakening press freedom in India, Rahul Gandhi said that the press freedom is very, very critical for democracy. He said, "It's not just press freedom. It's political access on multiple axis, there is a clamp down on the institutional framework that allowed India to talk, that allowed the Indian people to negotiate. And that structure that allows the negotiation between India's people is coming under pressure." 

Shri @RahulGandhi in discussion with esteemed members of the National Press Club in Washington DC, USA. pic.twitter.com/h98L1UtOsN

— Congress (@INCIndia) June 1, 2023