Rahul has accepted defeat from Amethi even before fighting polls: Smriti Irani

Amid speculations that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi may contest from Amethi, Smriti Irani, the sitting MP from the Lok Sabha seat, said the fact that the former is also planning to run from Wayanad, shows that he is not confident of winning in Amethi and has already accepted defeat.

Rahul lost Amethi, the parliamentary seat in Uttar Pradesh which has been a bastion of the Gandhi family, to Irani in the 2019 polls by a margin of 55,000 votes.

"Why are people who say that Amethi is the Gandhi family's bastion taking a lot of time to announce a candidate? Their lack of confidence tells you that Amethi is no longer the Congress bastion. If he is contesting on two seats, it means that he is announcing his loss from Amethi even before the elections. I had said that if his leader has courage, contest from Amethi alone without Mayawati, Akhilesh Yadav. The truth will come out," Irani said, speaking to reporters in Amethi on Thursday (March 7).

Irani, who is currently the Union Minister of Women and Child Development and Minority Affairs, was in Amethi to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of 281 projects worth ₹206 crore.

Congress afraid of defeat: Irani

The BJP leader said the Congress’s delay in announcing a candidate from the constituency shows its fear of defeat.

“At the moment I do not know who will contest the elections, but the way Congress people are not able to muster the courage to declare the candidate from here, it seems that Amethi’s power and fear of defeat is haunting them. This is clear indication of their defeat,” she said.

Recounting her journey in the constituency, Irani said it was sheer hard work that helped her win in the constituency.

“I came into Amethi politics in 2014 but lost the election to the ‘naamdars’. But I kept serving the people and BJP gave me another opportunity in 2019. The people of Amethi accepted me. History was created in Amethi in 2019,” she said.

Speaking about the work done for the youth by the Narendra Modi government, Irani said for the first time MP Youth Sports Competition was organised in the parliamentary constituency last year – an event which saw the participation of 1.11 lakh youth. She said this year, a similar event organised for women and girls saw 1,30,265 participants.

“My party has given me an opportunity to become your public representative again in 2024 when Bharatiya Janata Party is going to create a new history and is moving towards a massive victory and majority. A golden page in such history will also be linked to Amethi,” she said.

While the Congress is yet to formally announce a candidate for Amethi, the party’s leader from Uttar Pradesh, Pradeep Singhal said that Rahul has been finalised for the constituency and that his name will be announced soon. Singhal, who is also a Congress district president, made the announcement after attending a meeting in Delhi.