New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's remarks during the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Varanasi on Tuesday have ignited a firestorm of controversy, as he accused the youth of Uttar Pradesh of being “directionless.”

“In Varanasi, I observed some youths inebriated, lying on the streets, and dancing at night. The future of UP (youth) is intoxicated," Gandhi remarked.

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, started on January 14 from Thoubal in Manipur and will end on March 20 in Mumbai.

 Watch Rahul Gandhi calling youths of Kashi drunkards

The Congress's 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', aims to cover 6,700 km through 15 states, ahead of Lok Sabha polls 2024. Moreover, Black flags were reportedly shown during Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Raebareli.

A video shared by news agency ANI showed two people at a terrace of a building waving black flags as the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra passed by amid sounds of sirens.

In the latest, a special court in Sultanpur on Tuesday granted bail to Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case dating back to 2018.