Bajaj, Hero, TVS’ success shows firms can win with innovation, rather than cronyism: Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said Indian two-wheeler makers Bajaj, Hero and TVS were performing strongly in Colombia, asserting that their success proved Indian companies could win through innovation rather than cronyism.

“Proud to see Bajaj, Hero and TVS do so well in Colombia,” Gandhi wrote on X while posting a picture of himself standing beside a Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle during his ongoing four-nation South America tour.

Speaking earlier at a seminar titled ‘The Future is Today’ at the EIA University in Medellin, Gandhi criticised the model of a few conglomerates dominating the Indian economy. He argued that India’s social fabric and economic system were far more complex than China’s, and that the country’s strength lay in its plural traditions and spiritual depth.

“I am very optimistic about India, but at the same time, there are fault lines within the Indian structure. There are risks that India has to overcome. The single-biggest risk being the attack on democracy,” Gandhi told the audience.

“Different ideas, religions and traditions require space. The best method for creating that space is the democratic system,” he said, warning that India could not replicate China’s authoritarian approach.

His remarks drew sharp reactions from the BJP. Saffron party’s national spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi said that the nation could now clearly see the contrast between “who stands for India’s interests, and who, knowingly or unknowingly, is becoming a tool in the hands of anti-India forces”.

“This is neither an isolated nor an ordinary incident. Rahul Gandhi has, on multiple occasions, gone abroad and made statements against India,” he said.

Trivedi asked why Rahul, who goes abroad so frequently, never acknowledges the achievements recognised internationally.

He further questioned what unique talent did Gandhi possess that leads foreign universities to invite him, despite Congress’ many intellectuals such as Chidambaram, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari, Jairam Ramesh and even his uncle Sam Pitroda.

“Rahul Gandhi’s actions pose a serious threat to society and the country’s politics. If any party, out of greed for power, becomes willing to accept a system of foreign origin, then this foreign origin either proves to be a mere oversight or becomes a thorn for that party and the country,” he added.