Congress has “accepted defeat in Amethi” even before considering it has decided to field a “proxy” and not anyone from the Gandhi family on the seat, Union Minister and BJP candidate from Amethi, Smriti Irani said.
In her first reaction on Congress not fielding Rahul Gandhi from Amethi and instead making him contest from Rae Bareli, Irani said: “No member of the Gandhi family contesting from Amethi in itself is an indication that Congress has accepted its defeat from Amethi even before the elections.”
“I would say, if they had seen even the slightest chance of winning, they wouldn’t have fielded their proxy here,” Irani said.
Amethi has been the Congress party’s stronghold since 1967, and has seen either a Gandhi, or a Nehru contest from that seat, barring two instances. In 2024, for the first time in 25 years, a candidate who is not a member of either of the two families, will be contesting the Lok Sabha seat.
Rahul had been the MP from Amethi between 2004 and 2019. But, in 2019, Irani defeated Rahul and is now the incumbent MP in the seat.
Rahul will now contest against BJP’s Dinesh Pratap Singh for the Rae Bareli seat, which his mother, Sonia Gandhi, held.
Rahul contesting from Rae Bareli is a ‘victory’ for Amethi
Intensifying her attack on Congress, Irani said Rahul’s candidature from Rae Bareli is a “victory” for the people of Amethi.
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“I want to assure the people of Amethi that the Modi government will return, and we will continue to work for people here, with development being the centre of our focus,” the BJP leader further said.
Rahul Gandhi will never completely belong to Rae Bareli
Slamming Congress, Irani said: “In the last three years, Congress’ top leadership was not present there for the public. Jinhe Amethi ne aswikaar kar diya, Amethi chhor ke Wayanad chalegaye, woh Raebareli ke purnatah kabhi nahi ho paayenge (Someone who has been rejected by Amethi, who abandoned Amethi by moving to Wayanad can never truly belong to Rae Bareli).”
“If development was possible in Amethi in the last five years under a BJP MP, then why did Congress do such harm to Amethi over these last few decades? Today marks the victory of the people of Amethi,” Irani said.
“In 2019 the people of Amethi rejected the Gandhi family. Today, the Gandhi family is not fighting from Amethi. The people are asking that if in the last 5 years there was so much development in Amethi, the why did the Gandhi family not do anything this in the last 50 years,” Irani said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took a swipe at the Congress and said Rahul Gandhi was so scared of Amethi that he was running towards Rae Bareli.
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‘Daro mat, bhago mat’: PM Modi jabs Rahul Gandhi over Rae Bareli move
“I had already said in the Parliament that their (Congress) biggest leader will not dare to fight elections, and she will run away. She ran away to Rajasthan and came to the Rajya Sabha. I had already said the Shehzada was going to lose in Wayanad. I had said as soon as the polling was completed in Wayanad, he would start looking for another seat. He is so scared of Amethi that he is running towards Rae Bareli. They ask everyone ‘daro mat’. Today, I also ask them, ‘daro mat, bhago mat’,” PM Modi said in an election rally in West Bengal’s Bardhaman-Durgapur.
Voting in Amethi and Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituencies will be held on May 20.
With inputs from agencies
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