Rahul Gandhi Meets Students From Across India as Part of Outreach

As a part of the Congress’ outreach programme ‘Apni Baat, Rahul ke Saath’, Rahul Gandhi spoke to students.

(Photo: YouTube Screenshot/Indian National Congress/Altered by The Quint)

As a part of the Congress’ new outreach programme ‘Apni Baat, Rahul ke Saath.’ Rahul Gandhi tweeted a video of him interacting with students from across India. According to his tweet, Gandhi “learnt a lot from the wonderful exchange of ideas & perspectives.” Earlier, The Quint had also reported on the interaction. You can read the report here.

In the interaction, the students spoke about the issues which matter the most to them, ranging from caste-based discrimination to lack of support for girls’ education in the Muslim community. Here’s an excerpt from The Quint’s report of the interaction:

Rohan Reje Matthew from Kerala is a queer activist, who wants political parties to highlight the concerns of the queer community, like gender-neutral bathrooms in public spaces, and provision of mental health services for queer students in universities. "The queer community can no longer afford to be ignored, silenced, casualised and trivialised," said Rohan, also stating that in his meeting with Gandhi, he was assured that he would be put in touch with the committee responsible for drafting the manifesto for the 2019 general elections.

For Shemaila Ali Khan, a MBBS student from Delhi, the evening was a total surprise. "I didn't know I would be meeting Rahul Gandhi today!" she exclaimed before going on to explain her personal struggle in finding financial and infrastructural support to pursue her medical degree. For her, the issue of girls' education in Muslim communities is not just something which political parties use to score brownie points, but one which feels personal.

Similarly, for Anil Kumar Maurya, a law student from Agra in Uttar Pradesh, atrocities against Dalits is a matter which, in his meeting with Rahul Gandhi, he insisted should be a part of political parties’ agendas.