"Mother Entrusted Me..." Rahul Gandhi On Being Nominated From Raebareli

Attacked by the BJP and his former opponent, Smriti Irani, for deciding not to make an attempt to win back the family bastion of Amethi and contesting from the relatively safe seat of Raebareli instead, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said his mother has entrusted him with the responsibility of serving a constituency that means a lot to his family. 

After filing his nomination papers from Sonia Gandhi's former constituency, which she had held since 2004 before moving to the Rajya Sabha earlier this year, Mr Gandhi said being picked as the candidate for the seat was an emotional moment for him.

Mr Gandhi's grandmother, Indira Gandhi, and grandfather, Feroze Gandhi, had also represented Raebareli in the Lok Sabha. 

The MP, who is also contesting from the Wayanad seat again, filed his nomination papers earlier on Friday and was accompanied by Sonia Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra - who reportedly chose not to contest from there - and her husband Robert Vadra, and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge.

In a post on X, the former Amethi MP also made it a point to state that people from his earlier constituency as well as Raebareli are his family and he sees no difference between them. 

"Nomination from Raebareli was an emotional moment for me! My mother has entrusted me with the responsibility of the family's workplace ('karmabhoomi') and given me the opportunity to serve it. Amethi and Rae Bareli are not different for me, both are my family and I am happy that Kishori Lal ji, who has been serving the area for 40 years, will represent the party from Amethi," the Congress leader wrote. 

"In the ongoing fight for justice against injustice, I seek the love and blessings of my loved ones. I am confident that all of you stand with me in this fight to save the Constitution and democracy," he added.

The party's decision to field Mr Gandhi from Raebareli and family loyalist Kishori Lal Sharma from Amethi has given fodder to the BJP, which has accused the Congress leader of being afraid to take on Union Minister Smriti Irani, who had defeated the three-time MP from the seat in 2019. 

The attack was led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who said Mr Gandhi had "run away".  

"Today I also want to tell him, 'daro mat' (don't be afraid), 'bhaago mat' (don't run)," the PM said at a rally in Bengal.

Taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi and his family, Ms Irani said, "The Gandhi family not being present in the election fray in Amethi indicates that Congress party has accepted its defeat in Amethi even before polling is held on the seat. 

"Had they felt there was any chance of victory on the seat, they would have contested from here and not fielded their proxy... The one who was not accepted by Amethi and fled to Wayanad will never fully belong to Rae Bareli," she was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

Polling in Amethi and Raebareli will be held in the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on May 20.