Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Congress, referred to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as a “fundamentalist” and “fascist” organisation at a discussion at the Chatham House in London and claimed that it has effectively taken control of all of India’s institutions. Added Rahul Gandhi: “The nature of democratic contests in India has completely changed and the reason is that one organisation called RSS – a fundamentalist, fascist organisation has basically captured pretty much all of India’s institutions.”

The Dalits and other minorities in India were mentioned by the Congress MP. He said: “In India, you can see what is being done to Dalits, tribals, and minorities. It is not that Congress is saying it. There are articles in the foreign press all the time that there is a serious problem with Indian democracy.” The Congress leader also spoke on the dangers facing the nation’s institutions. “It shocked me how successful they have been at capturing the different institutions of our country. Press, Judiciary, Parliament, and Election Commission are all under threat and are controlled in one way or the other,” Rahul Gandhi stated.

“You can ask any Opposition leader as to how agencies are used. My phone had Pegasus on it, which was not happening when we were in power,” he added. During a talk at Cambridge University, the Congress leader made headlines by launching a vicious attack on the Centre. He said that an attack had been launched against the fundamentals of Indian democracy and that the Israeli spyware Pegasus was being used to spy on his phone.

Rahul asserted that the intelligence personnel had advised him to use caution when chatting on the phone since his calls were being recorded. “I myself had Pegasus on my phone. A large number of politicians had Pegasus on their phones. I have been called by intelligence officers who told me, ‘Please be careful about what you are saying on the phone because we are sort of recording the stuff’. So this is the constant pressure that we feel. Cases on the opposition. I have got a number of criminal liable cases for things that should under no circumstances be criminal liable cases. That’s what we are trying to defend,” the Congress leader mentioned in his address.