During his maiden visit to the UAE, Congress President Rahul Gandhi addressed the Indian diaspora at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday, 11 January. He also later addressed a gathering of Indian workers at the Labour Colony in Dubai.
In his address at the cricket stadium, Gandhi praised the UAE for declaring 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance', saying that India, on the other hand, has been witnessing four-and-a-half years of "intolerance".
“I’m sad to say that here, it is the Year of Tolerance, and back home, it is four and a half years of intolerance. What makes me sad is that today in India, my beloved country is being divided for political reasons and benefits.”Rahul Gandhi, President, Congress
Gandhi added that India’s youth has been ‘devastated’ by demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Speaking on that, he said:
“First big challenge is generating employment and we can beat China in this domain. Secondly, our farmers are in trouble and we need second Green Revolution. Single biggest problem that we face in India today is unemployment. We need to take this head-on. We need to show the rest of the world that not only we can beat unemployment but we can also challenge China.”Congress President Rahul Gandhi, as quoted by PTI
He also spoke about the farmer crisis in the country:
“Our farmers are in deep trouble, they are struggling and cannot see a future. We have to transform agriculture sector and need a second Green Revolution that can take our agricultural products across the world.”Congress President Rahul Gandhi, as quoted by PTI
Gandhi said he met Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and was impressed by his humility.
Gandhi, along with senior leader Sam Pitroda, also met with the business leaders at a breakfast.
The stadium was filled with scores of people originally from across India living in the UAE.
Gandhi headed for UAE's capital Abu Dhabi on Saturday, 12 January.
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