New Delhi: Amidst the rising political temperature, Congress workers in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday held a sit-in, demanding that the party name a member of the Gandhi family as its candidate from the Amethi Lok Sabha seat. The constituency is scheduled to polls on May 20 in the fifth round of the seven-phase general elections.
However, the Congress has not declared the candidate for the seat as only three days are left for the filing of nomination papers, the party's district spokesperson, Anil Singh, said. In a fervent display of support, leaders and workers from the Congress, including district president Pradeep Singhal and former district president Yogendra Mishra, gathered at the party office in Amethi with posters reading 'Amethi maange Rahul Gandhi. Amethi Maange Priyanka Gandhi' (Amethi wants Rahul Gandhi or (his sister) Priyanka Gandhi Vadra), reported PTI.
Notably, "People of the constituency and Congress workers want a member of the Gandhi family as their candidate", Singh remarked.
"We want Rahul Gandhi to contest from Amethi to bring back its lost honour", Singh added. The demonstrators demanded that the Congress immediately declare a candidate in Amethi and that its nominee be from the Gandhi family.
Amethi Seat Battle
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi won the seat in 2014. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Gandhi had fought the general elections from Wayanad in Kerala and Amethi. He lost Amethi to BJP's Smriti Irani.
BJP's Smriti Irani filed her nomination papers on April 29, continuing her bid for the seat historically considered a stronghold of the Gandhi family. The anticipation surrounding the Congress candidate was further heightened by the emergence of posters advocating for the candidacy of Robert Vadra, Rahul Gandhi's brother-in-law, in Amethi on April 24.
The constituency holds significant political legacy, having been represented by prominent figures from the Gandhi family including Sanjay Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, and Sonia Gandhi in the past.