Rahul Gandhi has said he is “very optimistic” that the Opposition parties will come together to present an alternative vision of India.

At a meeting in London on Saturday with members of the Indian Journalists’ Association and representatives of the mainstream British media, Rahul said the BJP and the RSS had “captured” the fundamental institutions of India, and the loans from banks were being geared towards serving only a handful of people like Gautam Adani.

He said the Indian media had largely been intimidated into silence so that there was no level playing field.

Asked specifically “what is your message to Indian Muslims” ahead of the general election, he responded: “Message to all Indians is that ‘You’re part of this wonderful country. You’re important for the future of this wonderful country.’ The entire country has to come together and work together if it has to be successful. I think the use of violence against anybody is wrong.”

Rahul Gandhi pays tribute to the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in London on Sunday. PTI

Rahul, who has mostly been in Cambridge since he arrived in the UK on Tuesday, struck a sombre note while being questioned for an hour on everything from his Bharat Jodo Yatra, the BBC documentary on Narendra Modi, the border dispute with China and the possibility of opinion in the UK affecting developments in India.

“There’s a lot of coordination that goes on with the Opposition parties. Conversations are going on between the Opposition parties. I’m aware of many of them. The basic idea that the RSS and the BJP need to be fought and defeated is deeply entrenched in the minds of the Opposition,” he said.

“There’s no question that there are tactical issues that require discussion. Some states are very simple. (In) other states, it is slightly more complicated. But the Opposition is very much capable of having this discussion and resolving it.”

He acknowledged: “You have individual states that work differently, but I think if we coalesce the Opposition with a different idea than that of the BJP, we will do very well in the elections.

“That vision is an inclusive vision. It’s a vision of bringing people together. And we’re in conversation. The Opposition is talking to each other. And I’m confident that we will get something very interesting going forward. I’m very optimistic.”

Rahul said he wasn’t really interested in George Soros’s view about the need for a “democratic revival” in India.

“I see with my own eyes what’s going on in India, and I can see (that) Mr Adani has gone from being the 609th richest man to the second richest man in a matter of three years,” Rahul said.

“I can see that he’s been rewarded. Across the board, I can see he’s allowed to dominate every industry in the country. We don’t need George Soros to tell us that. We can clearly see it’s happening. And he’s got a very good relationship with the Prime Minister.”

On his walk, he had heard complaints about “the concentration of wealth -– meaning Mr Adani”.

He turned a question about the BBC documentary to make observations on freedom of expression. “There is suppression of voice across the country. Example is the BBC. But the BBC is just one element. The BBC has found out about it now. But it’s been going on in India for the last nine years nonstop. Everybody knows that. Journalists are intimidated. They are attacked, they are threatened.

“We are fighting the BJP and the RSS who have captured almost all of India’s institutions. The idea of a level playing field doesn’t exist. In the United Kingdom…the institutions are neutral. That’s gone in India.

“The BJP wants India to be silent. They want it to be quiet... the Dalits, Adivasis, the media -– they want silence. They want silence because they want to be able to take what is India’s and give it to their close friends… two-three-four-five people.”

Rahul accepted: “There were periods (before) when there were aberrations but this is a full-scale attack on the institutional structure.... It has never been seen in modern India before. Completely different.”

He expressed dismay at the apparent lack of concern from the West: “The surprising thing is that the so-called defenders of democracy in the United States, European countries, seem to just be oblivious that a huge chunk of the democratic model has come undone. “And it’s not just an Indian battle. It’s actually a much more important battle.”