india

Updated: Jul 06, 2020 02:46 IST

Attacking the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday said it is “easy to take the name of Mahatma Gandhi but difficult to tread his path”.

“Some people are taking Gandhiji’s name but at the same time they’re trying to take the nation on their own path that is different from what the Father of the Nation had conceived,” she said.

While addressing party leaders and workers after paying tributes to Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary, the Congress president said that for the past few years some people have been using every possible method to become powerful. However, despite their effort India did not go astray from its right path because of the strong foundation laid by the Mahatma, she said.

“Gandhiji and India are synonymous. Some people these days want to change that. They want RSS and not Gandhiji to be a symbol of India. But I want to tell them clearly that India’s pluralistic culture, its traditions and its spirit of brotherhood will not allow that,” she added.

Earlier in the day, Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, took out a ‘padyatra (march)’ from the party’s Delhi office to Rajghat to pay homage to Gandhi. The Congress president then administered oath to party leaders and workers to “redeem Gandhi, Gandhism and Gandhi’s India”.