Calling it a battle of “system versus students”, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Saturday alleged that the country’s power structure was trying to suppress the questioning voices, and wanted “andh-bhakts, not students”.He was speaking at the fifth edition of Congress’ ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ programme in Indore, where thousands of youngsters had gathered to raise various issues ranging from stalled government recruitments and delayed degrees to reservation and lack of hostels.Rather than delivering a conventional political speech, Gandhi spent almost an hour interacting with students. Youth who were unable to enter the packed venue watched the programme on screens placed outside, while the gathering affected traffic on surrounding roads.“The system does not want students, it wants andh-bhakts,” Gandhi said, arguing that students are curious and ask questions, while unquestioning followers do not. He described students as the “foundation and future” of the country and said curiosity, fearlessness, humility, tolerance and honesty were essential for nation-building.Gandhi alleged that six people sat at the top of what he described as the “system” — Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and businessmen Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani. He accused them of exercising political, institutional, informational, ideological and financial influence.He also alleged that Doval controlled information and communications and suggested phones were being monitored. Gandhi questioned Jay Shah’s rise in cricket administration despite the presence of former players such as Sachin Tendulkar and Kapil Dev. He alleged that institutions, including the judiciary, bureaucracy and the Election Commission, were not being allowed to function independently.Youth at the ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ programme addressed by LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in Indore on Saturday. ANIStudents flag stalled appointments despite vacancies, reservationHowever, Gandhi’s political attack was repeatedly interrupted by students raising concerns over recruitment and exam-related problems, among other issues.An MPPSC aspirant, Akhil Bharti Kranti from Satna, said 13 per cent posts remained on hold. Kranti claimed nearly 4.87 lakh aspirants had been affected and many had crossed the age limit while waiting for appointments.Nursing student Yashika Dani said she enrolled in 2020 for a four-year course, but remained in the third year in2026. Sapna Gurjar from Rajgarh raised the issue of 27 per cent OBC reservation and stalled appointments.At one point, when Gandhi asked whether students had lost faith in the system, the response from the stage was stark: “Sir, we have lost to the system.”Gandhi also showed a clip of the September 6 Satya Niketan PG collapse in Delhi and met the grandfather, father and sister of Arpit, a young student from Dewas, who died in the tragedy. He linked the incident to inadequate student accommodation and argued that better facilities could prevent such tragedies.“Education is not a luxury or favour,” Gandhi said, calling it every student’s right and the government’s responsibility from kindergarten to university.He claimed education spending had fallen from 4.6 per cent during the Congress-led UPA period to 2.6 per cent, 1.5 crore students had lost scholarships over the past decade, around one lakh schools had closed and nearly 10 lakh teaching posts remained vacant. He also claimed only 14 per cent of students received hostel facilities.For the students gathered in Indore, however, the argument over the “system” came down to something more immediate, finishing a degree on time and finding a job after years of waiting.