New Delhi, April 4
In his first major interaction with Corporate India, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi positioned himself as an agent of change and unveiled his vision of a new India with empowerment of a billion people and inclusive growth as the central theme.

Addressing industry captains at the CII national conference, Rahul (42) widely seen as the Congress face for the 2014 General Election spelled out a transformational agenda for the country where the ordinary people matter more and their voice is heard in the corridors of power and also asked industry to work in tandem with the government.

In the hour-long interaction, Rahul’s speech was peppered with anecdotes and his personal experiences from interactions with ordinary people, including a 36-hour ride on a train to Mumbai with migrants.

Rahul’s take on most issues he chose to address was unconventional as he said “he was not a hard-nosed politician and didn’t want to become one”.

Calling for a structural change in the political system and devolution of power, Rahul said “If you are expecting one person on a horse to come and solve all your problems then you can keep expecting. It is not going to happen. But if you empower a billion people then things will happen very quickly”.

Pointing to inclusive growth and the Congress party’s strong track record, Rahul said it is the only party which believes in taking everyone along. He said the country has witnessed faster economic growth under the UPA because it had greatly lowered tensions among communities and fostered harmony.

"When you play the politics of alienating communities, you stop the movement of people and ideas. When that happens we all suffer. Businesses suffer and the seeds of disharmony are sown and the dreams of our people are severely disrupted. The biggest danger is excluding people, including the poor, minorities and Dalits," he said.

Calling for steps to tap what he called, “India’s unstoppable tide of human aspirations”, Rahul laid the vision of future and said: “We are readying to build a new political architecture in which all voices, including business, will be incorporated”.

Comparing India to a beehive, Rahul said the country has the same energy and the noise “which at times can drive you nuts”. He said that unlike a beehive which gives every member a voice, the system in India is "clogged" and the voices of most people are not heard.