Why Rahul Gandhi ditched white t-shirt for khadi kurta during SIR debate in Parliament

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday ditched his all-weather white polo t-shirt look for a khadi kurta in Parliament and it had a reason.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha during the debate on electoral reforms, Rahul Gandhi based his speech on fairness of elections and institutions around Mahatma Gandhi's ideas.

"One of these ideas was of self-sufficiency, marked by the handspun fabric khadi. Aaj pehna hun khadi (today I am even wearing khadi),” Rahul Gandhi said.

His comments came after BJP-led NDA MPs commented on his sartorial choice.

He explained that khadi is a symbol of equality and the "spirit of India." The Congress leader argued that just like different fabrics represent different states in India, they also symbolize unity.

“Have you ever wondered why Mahatma Gandhi laid such emphasis on khadi… why is it that he only wore khadi,” he asked in his speech, explaining, “Because, khadi is not just a cloth. Khadi is the expression of the people of India… Whichever state you go to, you will find different fabrics… and they represent the people."

The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha argued that the deeper meaning is that each one of the fabrics has “thousands of threads embracing each other”. “The other thing to notice is that all the threads are equal, and they come together as a fabric to protect you… keep you warm,” he said, saying India too is a “fabric of 1.5 billion people woven together by the vote".

He said the vote ensures every person is equal, but “this disturbs the RSS” — attacking the parent organisation of the BJP.

“They do not believe in equality, they believe in hierarchy, and believe they should be on top of that,” Gandhi said, also linking them with the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi by Nathuram Godse. He noted that the RSS and BJP deny any association with Godse.

He was wearing it, apparently, to underline which side he stood on “while the RSS-BJP hate the idea of equality”.

This was the first instance in a long time that Rahul Gandhi was spotted wearing something other than his trademark white polo t-shirt and cargo pants, a look he adopted during the days of Bharat Jodo Yatra.