NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday took another swipe at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), calling men who wear brown shorts and white shirts and consider themselves superior to women the “single biggest red flag” in India.The leader of opposition in Lok Sabha made the remark during an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session on Instagram on Friday, when a user asked him what he considered the biggest red flag in the country today. The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha responded: “The single biggest red flag is men who dress in brown shorts, wear white shirts and think they are superior to women.”The remark appeared to be a dig at the RSS, whose traditional uniform included brown shorts and a white shirt before the organisation replaced the shorts with brown trousers in 2016. Gandhi has frequently criticised the organisation, accusing it of promoting an ideology that sidelines women.The Instagram interaction also saw Gandhi appeal to people to participate in the INDIA bloc’s November 1 march against alleged voter irregularities and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Explaining the schedule, he said the march would begin at noon from the Minto Road-Connaught Place junction and proceed to Ramlila Maidan.For those unable to travel to Delhi, Rahul urged people in other cities to organise protests in whatever way they could. “If you are from different city then protest anyway you can be it a silent protest or inside a closed room protest against vote chori protest against Gyanesh Kumar,” he said.Asked what he would tell people who believed their vote did not matter, Gandhi said they were ignorant of its importance. “Vote is your identity. It is the fundamental architecture of your citizenship,” he said.The November 1 rally is part of the opposition’s campaign against alleged manipulation of electoral rolls and the functioning of the Election Commission, with the INDIA bloc demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. Several opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party, have announced their participation. Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said his workers would join the protest in large numbers.
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The Congress leader’s latest Instagram session is part of his efforts to engage directly with younger audiences. Gandhi had hosted a similar AMA on August 7, inviting students and Gen Z users to question him on education, student protests, politics and personal interests.During that interaction, he criticised the country’s education system, saying it had “collapsed”, and urged governments to listen to students. He also alleged that the RSS had captured the education system and was discouraging independent thinking.One lighter exchange from the earlier session gained traction online after Gandhi was asked whether he was Batman. “Let’s just say that no one has ever seen me and Batman in the same room together,” he replied.