New Delhi, Aug 16 (IANS): Congress President Rahul Gandhi will be visiting Germany and London next week to meet businessmen, politicians, academics and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), it was announced on Thursday.

"Because of the high demand from NRIs, and political, business, academia, intellectuals and media in EU and UK, President of the Indian National Congress Mr. Rahul Gandhi will be visiting Germany on August 22 and 23 and London on August 24 and 25," US-based engineer and innovator, Sam Pitroda, said in a tweet.

"Rahul Gandhi will give a series of talks at large public events, meet political and business leaders and also interact with intellectuals, academics, students and media.

"Congress president Rahul Gandhi started similar tours about a year ago to interact with global communities, NRIs and Indian Overseas Congress to understand, explore and promote India's interests and aspirations. He first visited US, then Middle East, Singapore and Malaysia," he said.

Pitroda was advisor to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and before him to Rajiv Gandhi for almost a decade in the 1980s. He was the founding chairman of India's Telecom Commission, now known as Department of Telecommunications.

He was the key figure in the establishment of Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) in 1984, founded to develop telecommunication technologies in the country.

"This tour of Rahul Gandhi to Germany and UK comes at a time when events in Turkey and free fall of Lira are getting global attention on the type and style of leadership and its impact on social, political and economic fabric of a country," he said, adding that people abroad are interested in listening to Gandhi on the issue of economy, employment, demonetisation and security.