Uttar Pradesh Congress leaders on June 17 welcomed former party president Rahul Gandhi’s decision to retain the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat. Speaking to The Hindu, U.P. Congress chief Ajay Rai said it had been the continuous demand of the State unit that Mr. Gandhi retained the Rae Bareli seat. He added that the decision would strengthen the party in U.P., and fill voters with pride that the Gandhi family was continuing to serve the people.
“We welcome the decision of our leadership. Our State unit has continuously demanded from Rahul-ji and the central leadership to retain the seat. The Gandhi family shares a very old relationship with Rae Bareli and Amethi. The decision will further strengthen the association,” Mr. Rai told The Hindu.
Mr. Gandhi won the Rae Bareli parliamentary seat in 2024 Lok Sabha election by 3,90,030 votes, defeating Dinesh Pratap Singh of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), while in neighbouring Amethi, the grand old party’s Kishori Lal Sharma won by 1,67,196 votes, defeating Union Minister Smriti Irani. The Congress won six out of the 17 seats it contested in U.P., registering its best performance since the 2009 General Election.
Published - June 18, 2024 01:14 am IST
