"Congress will win in both Amethi and Raebareli," says KC Venugopal
May 17, 2024
Amethi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 17 : Amid the ongoing Lok Sabha Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal hailed the INDIA alliance and said that they are intact and will register victory.
"We are intact and we will win. We are winning Amethi and Raebareli," he stated.
"You can see the mood of the people wherever you go. The mood is in favour of the INDIA alliance," he added.
On being asked about Rahul Gandhi's claim that the BJP won't win more than 150 seats, he said, "Rahul has statistics. He has travelled across the country. He knows people's pulse."
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav held a joint rally in Amethi as part of their campaign for KL Sharma the Congress and INDIA bloc candidate from Amethi.
Speaking at the rally Akhilesh Yadav said that the BJP had been defeated after the first 4 phases and would struggle to win even 140 seats.
"The four phases of elections are over. Ever since the four phases have been over, the Bharatiya Janata Party has been completely defeated. Their chariot has sunk, is stuck and tell me, have those who were giving the slogan of 400 plus forgotten or not? The people of the country have decided that they will make the BJP yearn for even 140 seats. These people want to change the constitution, they want to change our rights, now the people will change them," he said.
Congress' Rahul Gandhi once again alleged that the BJP aimed to change the constitution if they won the election.
"BJP leaders have clearly said that if they win the elections, they will change the Constitution. If the constitution ends, PSUs will not exist. There will be no jobs, reservations will be taken away and all your rights will be lost. Without the Constitution, only 22-25 rich people in the country will have power and the rights of all others will be taken away," Rahul Gandhi said.
Notably, Amethi and Raebareli -- two constituencies considered old turfs of the Gandhi family has again become the point of focus as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has entered the fray in Raebareli and the family's close aide Kishori Lal Sharma has been fielded against Smriti Irani in Amethi.
Congress won just 2 seats in Uttar Pradesh in 2014 (Rae Bareli and Amethi). The tally came down to just one in 2019 after the party lost Amethi.
The Congress, on May 3, announced Rahul Gandhi as a candidate from Raebareli and loyalist KL Sharma from Amethi. Rahul Gandhi is a sitting MP in Kerala's Wayanad, where he is seeking a fresh term alongside Rae Bareli. Rahul represented Amethi from 2004 until 2019.
He will face Congress defector and three-time MLC Dinesh Pratap Singh of BJP in Raebareli. Raebareli and Amethi constituencies will go to the polls on May 20 in the fifth phase.
Polling for 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh is being held across all seven phases. The counting of votes is scheduled for June 4.