Smriti Irani on Rahul Gandhi’s Amethi exit: ‘Wakeup call for voters of Wayanad’

Union minister and BJP leader Smriti Irani on Friday responded to Congress’s decision not to field Rahul Gandhi from Amethi, calling it a proclamation of defeat and that the “so-called” family bastion is now bereft of any family member.

Irani also said that Rahul Gandhi leaving the Amethi seat was a wakeup call for voters of Wayanad.

Speaking exclusively to India Today, Irani said, “He (Rahul Gandhi) left Amethi in 2019 in search for a safe seat, which was Wanayad. He proclaimed his nomination in Wanayad as a member of their family. Logo ko rang badalte dekhta tha, lekin parivaar badalte pehli baar dekh rahi hoon (I had seen people changing colours, but this is the first time I have seen someone changing their family),” she said.

“I think today is also a wakeup call for the people of Wayanad because Rahul Gandhi was clever by not declaring his true intentions to the voters of Wayanad. They have not left the seat of Amethi, but have also declared to voters that their words can not be counted upon,” the BJP MP asserted.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that post the voting in Wayanad, Rahul Gandhi will look for another seat and he turns out to be absolutely right.

PM Modi also said that the Congress leadership today, especially the first family, is running for cover and he was again right on mark. And that is why I am buoyant about the fact that we will see PM Modi returning to power once again with an overwhelming majority,” she added.

When asked to respond to claims of things being difficult for Smriti Irani in Amethi in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, the BJP leader said, “Congress’s ecosystem is extremely well-entrenched in creating a palpable system which many think will leverage well for their dynasts. I think that the decision taken by the first family, especially after recognising the reality of what confronts them now in Amethi, is a message to even those who thought fake videos could create an atmosphere of victory for Rahul Gandhi”.

“I believe that elections are fought on the table and not on Twitter (now known as X),” she said, adding that “I have been the MP of Amethi for only five years, whereas it has been a Congress bastion for five decades”.

Smriti Irani’s response came soon after Congress named Rahul Gandhi as its Raebareli pick, ending a weeks-long debate over the Gandhi scion taking on the BJP leader in Amethi after facing a defeat in 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

She said that the Congress had already conceded defeat in Amethi even before the constituency went to polls. Taking a dig at the Gandhi family, BJP’s Amethi candidate said Rahul Gandhi’s candidature is a “victory” for the people of the constituency.

“There has been great development in Amethi…if this much has been accomplished in 5 years, of which two years were lost to the battle against Covid, then why was it not done for 50 years in Amethi by the Gandhi family?” she asked, while speaking to reporters.

“I welcome the guests to Amethi. The fact that the Gandhis are not fighting in Amethi shows that even before a vote has been cast, they are losing from Amethi. If they had seen even a glimmer of hope, they would have contested and not put up a proxy candidate,” Smriti Irani told reporters, referring to Congress’s Amethi candidate Kishori Lal Sharma.

In an assurance to the people of Amethi, Irani said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre would return, and it would continue to work for the people. Continuing with her swipe at the Gandhi family, the Union Minister said that in 2019, the people of Amethi abandoned them, referencing her landmark victory against Rahul Gandhi from the constituency in Uttar Pradesh.

“The former MP had been missing for 15 years…There was no development. A lot of development took place in Amethi in the last five years,” she said. She added that in Raebareli too, the Gandhi family “didn’t serve the people” and they would “know” that Amethi had sidelined them.

Irani also recalled PM Modi’s earlier remark, in which he said that Congress is awaiting polls to conclude in Kerala so that a safe seat could be announced for Rahul Gandhi.

Smriti Irani has consistently been challenging Congress and Rahul Gandhi to contest from Amethi, and questioning the former party chief’s no-show in the constituency. Last month, she took a swipe at him for ignoring Amethi, saying Rahul Gandhi “had changed his family”. She has stuck to her barbs at the grand old party, exuding confidence in the BJP’s victory in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls in Amethi.

The BJP leader had also taken a jibe at former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, questioning why nothing was done in Amethi. “My mother didn’t run a government, but Rahul Ji’s mother ran a government at the Centre, yet why hasn’t anything been done for Amethi?” Irani asked.

Smriti Irani defeated Rahul Gandhi from Amethi in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections by over 50,000 votes. There was much suspense over Congress’s candidates in Amethi and Raebareli – both the grand old party’s strongholds.

Kishori Lal Sharma, a Congress loyalist, has been named as the Congress candidate in Amethi.

Amethi and Raebareli will go to polls on May 20 in the fifth round of the seven-phase process.

The Amethi seat has been represented by Rahul Gandhi from 2004, and he remained the MP from there for three consecutive terms till 2019. He currently represents Kerala’s Wayanad constituency, where he has contested this time also.

The Raebareli constituency, meanwhile, was represented by Sonia Gandhi from 2004 to 2024 and is seen as the traditional pocket borough of the Gandhi-Nehru family. Prior to this, she had represented Amethi Lok Sabha seat after her entry to politics and contested for the first time in 1999. The seat was previously held by Sanjay Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.