Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized Rahul Gandhi’s decision to contest the Lok Sabha seat in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh, suggesting that Gandhi’s move was driven by concerns about potentially losing the Wayanad seat in Kerala.
PM Modi issued a challenge to the Member of Parliament from Wayanad, urging them to contest against the BJP in Amethi and not”run or be scared.” He made these remarks during a rally in West Bengal.
Following the Wayanad election, PM Modi reiterated his earlier assertion that Rahul Gandhi had sought a secure constituency.
“I had already said that the Shehzada was going to lose in Wayanad. I had said that 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’… (don’t be scared, don’t run),” he stated.
Furthermore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mocked Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi’s mother, for relinquishing her seat in Rae Bareli and opting to join the Rajya Sabha.
“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,” he continued.
After much speculation, the Congress announced today that Rahul Gandhi would contest the Lok Sabha election from Rae Bareli.
Kishori Lal Sharma, a supporter of Rahul Gandhi from Amethi, will contest the election.
Rahul Gandhi, originally from Amethi, ventured into politics in 2004 and won elections in 2004, 2009, and 2014. However, his defeat to Smriti Irani in the 2019 elections marked a significant shift as it breached the once-impregnable fortress of Amethi.
From 1981 until his passing in 1991, Rahul Gandhi’s father, the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, served as Amethi’s Member of Parliament. In 1999, Sonia Gandhi served as the constituency’s representative in the Lok Sabha.
There were earlier speculations about the possibility of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra contesting parliamentary elections from her mother’s constituency.
On May 20, the constituencies of Amethi and Rae Bareli will go to the polls.
