Sam Pitroda, one of the closest advisors to Rahul Gandhi, speaks about his vision and reason for his US visit.
Rohit Sharma (RS)- Tell us about the US Tour of Rahul Gandhi, what brings him to the U.S.?
Sam Pitroda (SM) — We in the Congress and Shri Rahul Gandhi, believe that India being the World’s Largest Democracy, should engage with people of the World on the idea of Democracy. As a part of this engagement, Shri Rahul Gandhi was invited to speak at the Prestigious Stanford University’s Center on Democracy, Development & the Rule of Law, where he will speak on The New Global Equilibrium. Apart from this we have multiple engagements which will allow for Rahul Gandhi to have a dialogue with the diaspora and leaders.
RS — Interesting choice of word there, Dialogue.
SM – Yes! The intention of these multiple engagements is to showcase that unlike other leaders, who believe in one way communication and have reduced democracy to plain speeches, Rahul Gandhi wants to listen to what people have to say and hence it will be a dialogue.
RS- What message does Rahul Gandhi bring to the US?
SM- The message is clear. He wants to communicate that he and the Congress party believes in a rule of law in which there is a spirit of democracy, the texture of democracy. A democracy that cannot have discrimination in any form. In the US, he will be holding such interactive meetings to share the idea of our own way of looking at democracy.
RS- Can you elaborate?
SM- Mr. Rahul Gandhi will be meeting with the people and leaders to emphasize that Indian Democracy is for the global good. Over here in the US, as we have all seen, the democracy here has gone through some strains and we are also experiencing it in India. We are concerned about it. Our message is clear, we believe in Equality and Love, not hate. We have had similar engagements in the UK and after the US, we are planning a visit to Australia.
RS- Apart from the talk at Stanford, what other engagement does Rahul Gandhi have?
SM – He will kick off his US visit by speaking at Stanford tomorrow (May 31st), then there is an AI Event which will be attended by entrepreneurs followed by a a meet and greet event in San Jose, where we are expecting about 1000 people, which will be followed by a private dinner. On the 1st of June, he will be in Washington D.C. and will speak at the Hudson Institute with a Q & A session, followed by a Talk at the National Press Club. On the 2nd he has meetings with local diaspora and leaders. On the 3rd he will be in New York, meeting with leaders and diaspora there followed by a big rally in NYC on June 4th, where we are expecting a crowd of about 5000 people.
RS- Will he be meeting with US Congressman, Senators and politicians when he is in DC.?
SM- Yes, there will be US politicians attending a private dinner of about 80 people when he is in D.C.
RS- Can we expect Rahul Gandhi to talk about his vision of India, especially as the elections are now only 12 months away?
SM – Absolutely. He will speak on a broad range of topics that include our vision about democracy, growth, economy and development and our vision of India.
Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma is a Senior Journalist who has lived in Washington DC since 2007. He currently is a contributor to Dainik Bhaskar, the world's third largest newspaper by readership. His opinion pieces feature on News 9 and The Quint. He has been invited as guest on the BBC, NDTV, India Today, AajTak, Times Now, Republic, Zee news and others. His work has featured in six Indian Languages.
![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://www.indiaamericatoday.com/exclusive-interview-with-sam-pitroda-on-rahul-gandhis-us-visit/&media=https://www.indiaamericatoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Rahul_Gandhi_speaking.jpeg&description="Rahul Gandhi will speak on a broad range of topics that include our vision about democracy, growth, economy and development and our vision of India." Sam Pitroda){kind=link}