Raebareli: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi made a bold statement on Tuesday, asserting that had his sister, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, contested the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi would have faced defeat by a margin of two to three lakh votes. Gandhi made these remarks while addressing a public gathering in Uttar Pradesh’s Raebareli.
“The BJP lost the Ayodhya seat… Not only in Ayodhya, Varanasi mein jaan bacha ke nikle hain pradhan mantri. If my sister (Priyanka Gandhi) had contested from Varanasi, the Prime Minister of India would have lost the Varanasi election by 2-3 lakh votes. I am not saying this with arrogance, but the people of the country have given a message to the Prime Minister that they are against their way of politics”, said the Congress MP.
प्रधानमंत्री मोदी वाराणसी में जैसे-तैसे जीते हैं।
अगर मेरी बहन वहां से लड़ गई होती तो आज प्रधानमंत्री 2-3 लाख वोटों से वाराणसी का चुनाव हार जाते।
: @RahulGandhi जी pic.twitter.com/hlHH5Tfj3J
— Congress (@INCIndia) June 11, 2024
Varanasi, one of the key seats in Uttar Pradesh, was won by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the third consecutive term by defeating Congress candidate Ajay Rai by a margin of 1,52,513 votes.
Rahul Gandhi further said, “I want to thank all the leaders and the members of the Congress party and the people of Amethi and Raebarelli for making us win. This time, the Congress party fought unitedly in Amethi, Raebarelli, Uttar Pradesh and across the country. I want to tell the Samajwadi Party that your leaders fought unitedly with Congress leaders this time.”
#WATCH | Addressing a public gathering in Raebareli, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi says, “I want to thank all the leaders and the members of the Congress party and the people of Amethi and Raebarelli for making us win. This time Congress party fought unitedly in Amethi, Raebarelli,… pic.twitter.com/wcc2WOHtwa
— NewsMobile (@NewsMobileIndia) June 11, 2024
Rahul Gandhi further said that the people of the country made the Prime Minister bow down to the Constitution.
“You have made Kishori Lal Sharmaji win in Amethi, me in Rae Bareli, and the MPs of the INDIA bloc in Uttar Pradesh… You have changed the politics of the entire country… The public has sent a message to the Prime Minister of the country that if he touches the Constitution, then see what people will do to him. You have made him bow down infront of the Constitution”, he said.
#WATCH | Addressing a public gathering in Raebareli, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi says, “You (BJP) have made Kishori Lal Sharma win in Amethi, me in Rae Bareli, and the MPs of INDIA alliance in Uttar Pradesh… You have changed the politics of the entire country… The public has… pic.twitter.com/MngZSUxfsE
— NewsMobile (@NewsMobileIndia) June 11, 2024
Earlier, Rahul Gandhi took aim at the Modi government criticising what he termed as dynastic politics within the NDA ministry. Dubbing the NDA cabinet as a “parivar mandal” (family committee), Gandhi highlighted the presence of several ministers in Modi 3.0 government who hail from political families.
पीढ़ियों के संघर्ष, सेवा और बलिदान की परंपरा को परिवारवाद कहने वाले अपने ‘सरकारी परिवार’ को सत्ता की वसीयत बांट रहे।
कथनी और करनी के इसी फर्क को नरेंद्र मोदी कहते हैं! pic.twitter.com/eAlfemxAJk
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 11, 2024
Gandhi who contested from two seats — Rae Bareli and Wayanad, registered victory on both constituencies by huge margins. Rahul Gandhi won the seat of Rae Bareli by defeating BJP’s Dinesh Pratap Singh by a margin of 3,90,030 votes. He had contested this seat, aiming to save the lone bastion of the party in the state after he lost Amethi in 2019.
The Congress leader also won the seat of Kerala’s Wayanad, which paved his entry to the Lok Sabha in 2019. He defeated Communist Party of India-Marxist candidate Annie Raja by 3,64,422 votes.
According to the Election Commission of India, BJP won 240 seats, much lower than its 2019 tally of 303. The Congress, on the other hand, registered a strong improvement, winning 99 seats. The INDIA bloc crossed the 230 mark, posing stiff competition, and defying all predictions.
