'Congress has accepted defeat...': Irani on Rahul Gandhi's Amethi exit
Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Smriti Irani has claimed that the Congress party's decision to not field a member of the Gandhi family from Amethi is an admission of defeat. This statement follows the official announcement of Kishori Lal Sharma and Rahul Gandhi's candidature from Amethi and Rae Bareli seats, respectively. Reacting to the development, Irani, who is seeking re-election from Amethi, criticized the lack of significant development in the constituency under Congress rule.
Irani highlights developmental strides under BJP rule
"If development was possible in Amethi in the last five years under BJP MP, then why did Congress do such harm to the constituency over the last many decades?" she asked. Irani filed nomination papers for the Amethi Lok Sabha constituency earlier this week. After filing her nomination papers, she stated that she had accomplished more in five years than what was achieved in 50 years, attributing this success to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's support.
Today is the victory of the people of Amethi: Irani
Congress Congress picks Rahul Gandhi from Rae Bareli
On Friday, the Congress fielded Kishori Lal Sharma from the Amethi constituency, which was represented by Rahul from 2004 to 2019, when he was ousted by Irani. In place of Amethi, Rahul will represent the Rae Bareli seat in Uttar Pradesh. He will take on the BJP's Dinesh Pratap Singh, who lost the 2019 elections to his mother, Sonia Gandhi. Rahul is also running for re-election from Wayanad in Kerala.
Election schedule for Rae Bareli and Amethi
The constituencies of Amethi and Rae Bareli are set to vote on May 20, the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha election. As part of a seat-sharing agreement with the Samajwadi Party (SP), the Congress is running for 17 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh. Polling for the general election started on April 19. The votes will be counted on June 4.
