Amethi: Residents of Amethi, which is considered a traditional bastion of the Congress Party, are now inclined towards Varun Gandhi, a report from news agency IANS said. This shift comes due to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s silence around whether he will contest again for the Lok Sabha seat there. Notably, after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi lost to the BJP’s Smriti Irani in the 2019 election, he has remained mum about his intentions to reclaim his ‘ancestral constituency’.
Rahul is now a Lok Sabha MP from Wayanad in Kerala and if the reports are to be believed, Rahul would prefer to seek election from Wayanad again. If Priyanka Gandhi contests the Lok Sabha elections, she is also likely to choose Rae Bareli over Amethi.
An indication of this effect was already made in a letter that Sonia wrote to the people of her constituency earlier this month in which she said, “I know that you will stand by me and my family in the future, just as you have in the past.”
Ram Karan Singh, a veteran Congressman who started his career with the late Sanjay Gandhi, said that Amethi’s relationship with the Gandhi family began when Sanjay Gandhi won the seat in 1980.
“Time seems to have come full circle now and there are talks that Varun is likely to contest from Amethi in case Rahul Gandhi does not agree to contest. If that happens, we will all be delighted,” said Ram Karan Singh.
Varun Gandhi Not To Get Ticket From BJP?
When Varun contested the Lok Sabha election in 2014, he made it a point to reach out to all veteran Congress leaders who had worked with his late father and despite the political differences, they all responded wholeheartedly and welcomed Varun with open arms. The report has said that the BJP is unlikely to give a ticket to Varun Gandhi, who is known to have been highly critical of the party’s policies.
“Varun can shift to Amethi, while Maneka Gandhi may go back to Pilibhit, where she continues to enjoy a strong base. Varun is likely to contest as an independent, with the Congress and Samajwadi Party supporting him. Varun enjoys good relations with Akhilesh Yadav,” said a source close to Varun Gandhi.
Incidentally, Maneka’s constituency of Sultanpur has a strong contender from the BJP in Rajeshwar Singh, a former ED official-turned-politician.
Rajeshwar Singh, who belongs to Sultanpur, is an MLA from the Sarojini Nagar assembly seat in Lucknow but has been working overtime in Sultanpur. He is said to be in the good books of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
(With inputs from agencies)
