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Rahul Gandhi's Interaction With Bihar Woman Goes Viral. The Topic: Marriage

Rahul Gandhi's Interaction With Bihar Woman Goes Viral. The Topic: Marriage

NDTV07-06-2025
New Delhi:
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's visit to Bihar led to an interesting interaction between him and Riya Paswan, also known as 'Pad Girl' on social media. During a Mahila Samwad programme in Gaya, Ms Paswan told Rahul Gandhi that he had inspired her to join politics.
She then added that just like him, she will never get married.
In a video, shared on X (formerly Twitter), Ms Paswan, who lives in a slum area, said she owed her progress in life to the Shakti Abhiyan, an initiative by the Congress to increase women participation in politics. Ms Paswan explained that politics is the first step to improve different sectors, such as education, but many people do not join the field, especially women.
'We have a very big team in the slum areas. We made this during the Shakti Abhiyan itself. We try to solve the small problems of the people. Now it has become such that if people have any problem, they come to us,' she added.
Impressed by her confidence, Rahul Gandhi replied, 'You give good speeches.'
An excited Riya Paswan added, 'Like you, I am also thinking of never getting married,' prompting laughter from the audience.
She continued, 'I want to become a leader and work for the public. I want to join politics because when I entered the Shakti Abhiyan, I realised what politics actually is.'
Riya Paswan gained fame in 2022 when she questioned a bureaucrat, IAS officer Harjot Kaur Bhamra, about providing free sanitary pads.
Rahul Gandhi was on a one-day trip to Bihar on June 6, ahead of the Assembly elections, which are expected to be held in November.
He criticised the JDU and BJP-led state government during his tour of the poll-bound state. While addressing a gathering in Rajgir's Nalanda, chief minister Nitish Kumar's home district, the Congress leader accused the JDU-BJP alliance of turning Bihar from the 'land of knowledge' to the country's 'crime capital'.
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