Amethi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], April 25 : Congress leader and former MLC Deepak Singh on Thursday asserted that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will come to Amethi at a 'shubh muhurat' adding that he will win in Amethi, and become an MP and the Prime Minister.
"Rahul Gandhi will come on 26th April - Smriti Irani was expressing this fear. But all of us believe that Rahul Gandhi will come at a 'shubh muhurat', he will come on time. This time, he will win in Amethi, and become an MP and the Prime Minister of India. He will make the record of winning from Amethi with the highest number of votes...The entire Congress and the whole of Amethi are awaiting Rahul Gandhi. Everyone believes that he will come at 'shubh muhurat' and file his nomination," Deepak Singh told ANI.
Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Rahul Gandhi are likely to contest the Lok Sabha election from Rae Bareli and Amethi seats, respectively, sources said on Thursday.
According to the sources, the final decision will be taken after April 26 and nominations can be filed next week. Phase 2 of the elections are scheduled for April 26. In this phase Wayanad from where Rahul Gandhi is contesting will go to the polls.
Smriti Irani defeated Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Amethi. Irani has again been fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party from the seat.
As per the seat agreement between the Samajwadi Party and Congress in Uttar Pradesh, Congress will contest 17 seats and the Samajwadi Party the remaining 63 seats in the electorally crucial state.
Apart from its traditional strongholds of Rae Bareli and Amethi, the Congress is also contesting on Varanasi, Ghaziabad and Kanpur.
Earlier, posters featuring Robert Vadra, husband of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, appeared outside the party's office on Wednesday in the Gauriganj area of Amethi. This raised speculations of a possible ticket for Vadra.
However, the Congress appears to put up a fight for every seat that it is contesting and has thus decided on fielding the Gandhi sibling. Amethi and Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituencies will vote in the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on May 20.
However, Rahul Gandhi will not find the going easy in his erstwhile bastion as Union Minister Smriti Irani has been campaigning extensively in the constituency. On April 8, the Union Minister questioned Rahul Gandhi's loyalty to Amethi.
Rae Bareli is a Congress bastion since 1960 with both Feroze Gandhi and Indira Gandhi having represented it. Sonia Gandhi has been the MP from the constituency since she won the 2006 by poll. With Sonia moving to the upper house, the Congress is likely to field Priyanka Gandhi who is a general secretary in the party.