Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said that Congress candidate KL Sharma is "enough" for BJP's incumbent MP Smriti Irani as he is the "familiar face" in Amethi for the past 40 years.
Notably, the Congress has fielded Mr Sharma, replacing Rahul Gandhi, on the last day of filing nominations in Amethi on May 3. Gandhi who has been wining from Amethi since 2004, lost to Irani in 2019 parliamentary polls. The Congress has fielded the former Amethi MP from Raebareli.
Mr Gehlot told news agency ANI that Mr Sharma has been working for the welfare of the Amethi people for the past 40 years.
"Rahul Gandhi is not contesting from Amethi because KL Sharma has been a ground-level worker for the past 40 years and he is enough for Smriti Irani. Rahul Gandhi will definitely win the Raebareli seat. KL Sharma is a familiar face for the people here. He has worked for the welfare of the people. What could be better for the people than getting a person who has been working for them for so long," he told ANI on Saturday when being asked how he sees the contest in Amethi.
Mr Gehlot emphasised that the Congress will handsomely win both the Amethi and Raebareli seats, where voting will be done in the fifth phase on May 20.
"If you go to both areas, you will find that there is a one-sided fight. Smriti Irani is also a Union Minister and people expected a lot from her. In 2014 and 2019, she spread a lot of confusion against Rahul Gandhi and in 2019, she got success," Mr Gehlot added.
Sharpening his attacks on the BJP, the Congress leader said that with the conclusion of the first, second and third phases of the Lok Sabha elections, it is becoming clear that the BJP government will go.
"The BJP thought that 'Abki baar Modi Sarkar' and 'Modi ki guarantee' would win elections for them but it is not so. That's why Modi Ji is also scared and calling our manifesto that of the Muslim League, and that Congress will snatch Mangalsutra...," he said.
He also mentioned that Congress 'Nyay Patra' is not just a manifesto but a document of the future.
"This is a revolutionary document. The more we go deeper into this, the more we will know that the future belongs to the young generation," Mr Gehlot said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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