Newly appointed Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) national president Hemang Joshi launched a sharp attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday, alleging that young people attend Gandhi's "Chhatro Ki Goonj" campaign events primarily for the musical concerts rather than any substantive engagement, and mocking his understanding of Hindutva and Indianness. Joshi's remarks came shortly after he formally took charge as the BJYM's national president at a function held at the BJP headquarters extension office in Delhi, where he received an enthusiastic welcome from party workers who gathered with dhols and raised slogans in his support.

Speaking to news agency PTI ahead of the event, Joshi alleged that Gandhi consistently raises issues concerning India's youth without offering concrete solutions, and accused him of attempting to portray even positive national developments as problems. "As for Rahul Gandhi, the kind of programmes he is conducting among the youth, even he and his team know that young people attend those programmes primarily for musical concerts. He has never talked about what solutions he has to any of their problems," Joshi said, directly targeting the substance and format of Gandhi's youth outreach campaign, which has so far held four events focused on issues concerning students and young people.

Joshi extended his criticism beyond the substance of Gandhi's campaign, taking aim at the Congress leader's personal presentation and choice of attire over the years. He claimed that Gandhi wore kurta-pyjama in his younger years in an apparent attempt to appear older and more mature, and has since shifted toward wearing T-shirts and jeans in what Joshi characterized as an effort to project a younger, more relatable image as he has aged.

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Referring to an earlier interview in which Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had claimed that her brother possessed the depth of understanding needed to debate senior BJP leaders on the subject of Hindutva, Joshi asserted that young people today view such claims with skepticism and amusement. "The youth are now laughing at him. His attempt to appear young after having tried to look older in his youth is destined to fail," Joshi said, framing his broader critique around what he described as a fundamental disconnect between Gandhi's public image and his actual engagement with substantive policy or ideological matters.

The remarks mark an early and combative start to Joshi's tenure as BJYM chief, signaling that the youth wing of the BJP intends to continue positioning itself as a vocal challenger to Congress's efforts to court India's young voters. Joshi's comments also reflect the broader pattern of political sparring between the BJP and Congress camps over youth engagement strategies, with both parties increasingly competing to define which side better understands and represents the concerns and aspirations of India's young electorate ahead of future electoral contests.

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