After the Congress party decided to field Rahul Gandhi from Raebareli, dashing hopes of a member of the Gandhi family contesting the Amethi seat, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said the Wayanad MP has “abandoned” the Amethi Lok Sabha seat, adding that it is an admission by Rahul that he cannot win the seat he held for two terms till 2019.
Amethi was considered a citadel of the Nehru-Gandhi family since its creation as a constituency in 1967, represented by a member of the Gandhi family for approximately 31 years. In a scathing attack, BJP leader Amit Malviya said, “Finally, Rahul Gandhi has abandoned Amethi. Losers often do that. So, no surprises there. It is also an admission that Rahul Gandhi can’t win. In which case, why should anyone waste their vote on the I.N.D.I Alliance? Phase 3 onwards, the voting will be even more in favor of the NDA.”
The Congress’ decision to nominate Rahul Gandhi from Raebareli also stopped any talk of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra making her political debut from the state. Malviya said this shows Congress wants to keep “Priyanka Gandhi Vadra out of power”.
“It is clear as daylight that the Rahul Gandhi camp doesn’t want the sister to rise, lest she outshines him. How this sibling struggle for power within Congress plays out remains to be seen. But for now, Priyanka Vadra has lost out, again,” Malviya added.
Also Read:Who is Kishori Lal Sharma, Congress’s surprise pick for Amethi?
Priyanka Gandhi campaigns in Amethi
Meanwhile, members of the Gandhi family, including Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi, general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot, and Robert Vadra, arrived at Fursatganj Airport in Amethi.
During a roadshow with party candidate Kishori Lal Sharma in Amethi, Priyanka Gandhi stated, “I’m in a hurry as I must leave for Raebareli to attend Rahul Gandhi’s nomination filing. Kishori Lal Sharma is contesting from Amethi, known to you for 40 years. He is well-acquainted with Amethi’s issues. Together, we’ll fight to ensure Kishori Lal Sharma’s victory.”
“We want the politics of service. We will start that from here. This is your election, you will fight and win. KL Sharma is fighting election from here. He knows the place since last 35-40 years. He knows all the areas and workers and also your problems. I will accompany him and you should make him win,” she said.
Rahul Gandhi is pitted against BJP’s Dinesh Pratap Singh. Rahul represents Wayanad in the Lok Sabha, while Smriti Irani is running again for Amethi. Sonia Gandhi used to represent Raebareli and is now in the Rajya Sabha. Kishori Lal Sharma, a Gandhi family loyalist from Amethi, will contest the seat Rahul lost to Smriti Irani in 2019.
Sonia Gandhi contested from here in 1999 before Rahul took over in 2004. Irani had earlier filed her nomination for Amethi. These seats will be voted on in the fifth phase on May 20. Rahul served Amethi from 2004 to 2019, after his father, Rajiv Gandhi, who held it from 1981 to 1991.
Friday is the last day for nominations for the seats contested on May 20 in the fifth phase. Congress has traditionally won these seats, barring three exceptions since 1951. Before Sonia, Indira Gandhi won Raebareli three times. Feroze Gandhi, Indira’s husband and Congress leader, won twice, in 1952 and 1957. A Nehru-Gandhi family member contested the seat only twice, in 1962 and 1999.
Both seats are strongholds of the Gandhi-Nehru family. Congress is contesting 17 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, sharing with the Samajwadi Party (SP), except for Amethi and Raebareli. Rahul’s defeat in Amethi, once considered a Congress ‘pocket borough’, in the 2019 polls at the hands of Smriti Irani was seen as a massive blow to the party’s national prestige.