Congress' Rahul Gandhi to contest from Rae Bareli: Here are reactions from political leaders

Rahul Gandhi to contest from Rae Bareli: Here are reactions from political leaders

"No member of the Gandhi family contesting from Amethi in itself is an indication that Congress has accepted its defeat from Amethi even before elections," says Amethi MP & Union Minister Smriti Irani.

PM Modi says, "I had already said in the Parliament that their (Congress) biggest leader will not dare to fight elections and she will run away. She ran away to Rajasthan and came to the Rajya Sabha... I had already said that the Shehzada was going to lose in Wayanad. I had said that as soon as the polling was completed in Wayanad, he would start looking for another seat... He is so scared of Amethi that he is running towards Rae Bareli. They ask everyone 'Daro Mat'. Today, I also ask them, 'Daro Mat, Bhago Mat'..."

Piyush Goyal says, "No matter where he goes, his defeat is certain. The way that family has betrayed the people time and again and have done the politics of appeasement...this country will never forgive them."" width="1280" height="720" /> Union Minister Piyush Goyal says, "No matter where he goes, his defeat is certain. The way that family has betrayed the people time and again and have done the politics of appeasement...this country will never forgive them."

Vijay Kumar Sinha says, "Rahul Gandhi may contest elections from any corner of the country, he is not going to get the trust of the people and he is scared... He does not have the confidence that he will win from Wayanad and they are running towards Amethi and Raebareli. How can such people who could not even play the role of Opposition honestly, dream of leading the country... The people of Uttar Pradesh will not accept those who are standing with those who insulted Ramcharitmanas... He (Rahul Gandhi) will lose the election and he has been rejected in politics."" width="1280" height="720" /> Bihar Dy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha says, "Rahul Gandhi may contest elections from any corner of the country, he is not going to get the trust of the people and he is scared... He does not have the confidence that he will win from Wayanad and they are running towards Amethi and Raebareli. How can such people who could not even play the role of Opposition honestly, dream of leading the country... The people of Uttar Pradesh will not accept those who are standing with those who insulted Ramcharitmanas... He (Rahul Gandhi) will lose the election and he has been rejected in politics."

Former Congress leader Acharya Pramod Krishnam says, "Rahul Gandhi should have contested from Amethi. Running away from Amethi gives a message that a person who challenged PM Modi every day and asked the people of the country 'Daro Mat' (do not be scared). Today, he is scared. This is unfortunate for the Congress..."

Tamilisai Soundararajan says, "They are not confident of contesting from the place where they contested for a long time, also they haven't done anything from the constituency and hence they aren't confident. Smriti Irani is a very strong leader and she has done a lot for the constituency, so he knows that he is losing if he contests from there (Amethi)."" width="1920" height="1080" /> BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan says, "They are not confident of contesting from the place where they contested for a long time, also they haven't done anything from the constituency and hence they aren't confident. Smriti Irani is a very strong leader and she has done a lot for the constituency, so he knows that he is losing if he contests from there (Amethi)."

Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami says, "...Rahul Gandhi has left and run away from his family's traditional seat. The way he has migrated, the entire Congress party will migrate."

Sanjay Raut says, "Rahul Gandhi is not the person who is going to get scared. He fights and wins from Wayanad, however, we all had that wish that someone from the Gandhi family should fight from Uttar Pradesh whether it's Amethi or Raebareli. Sonia Gandhi has informed Rahul Gandhi to fight from Raebareli and we welcome that. Since the period of Indira Gandhi, the Nehruvian family kept fighting from Raebareli. Anyone can win Amethi, KL Sharma is part of the Gandhi family member. This time Smriti Irani is not going to Lok Sabha, but KL Sharma is..."" width="1280" height="720" /> Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut says, "Rahul Gandhi is not the person who is going to get scared. He fights and wins from Wayanad, however, we all had that wish that someone from the Gandhi family should fight from Uttar Pradesh whether it's Amethi or Rae Bareli. Sonia Gandhi has informed Rahul Gandhi to fight from Rae Bareli and we welcome that. Since the period of Indira Gandhi, the Nehruvian family kept fighting from Rae Bareli. Anyone can win Amethi, KL Sharma is part of the Gandhi family member. This time Smriti Irani is not going to Lok Sabha, but KL Sharma is..."

Union Minister Prlhad Joshi says, "He will be defeated and he will never forget that defeat in his life."

Union Minister and BJP Hamirpur candidate Anurag Thakur says, "Sometimes back Rahul Gandhi used to say 'daro mat, daro mat' (don't be scared), now due to fear, from Amethi to Wayanad and Wayanad to Rae Bareli indicates his scaredness towards defeat taking him everywhere...He was not able to serve justice to his sister (Priyanka Gandhi Vadra) as on one side Robert Vadra was also asking for tickets and on the other side party's demand was for Priyanka Gandhi, however, her name was not mentioned in the party's list shows something is going on within Congress party..."

Ashok Gehlot says "Everyone is happy. Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Raebareli. Both (KL Sharma and Rahul Gandhi) are going to win with a huge margin...Who is she (Smriti Irani) to say anything, she is scared..."" width="3009" height="3183" /> Former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot says "Everyone is happy. Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Rae Bareli. Both (KL Sharma and Rahul Gandhi) are going to win with a huge margin...Who is she (Smriti Irani) to say anything, she is scared..."

Mohan Yadav says, "...Earlier Congress wasn't able to decide what to do...After being defeated in Amethi last time, Rahul Gandhi ran to Kerala (Wayanad)...Rahul Gandhi is going to be defeated in Raebareli as well. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has run away from the battlefield..."" width="1280" height="718" /> Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav says, "...Earlier Congress wasn't able to decide what to do...After being defeated in Amethi last time, Rahul Gandhi ran to Kerala (Wayanad)...Rahul Gandhi is going to be defeated in Rae Bareli as well. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has run away from the battlefield..."

Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM KP Maurya says, "This means that Congress and INDI alliance has surrendered before the elections. Running away from Amethi means that Congress would have to run from Rae Bareli also in the coming time. Lotus will bloom in Rae Bareli... Rahul Gandhi will lose with even more votes in Rae Bareli, than in Amethi... The lotus will bloom, the cycle will be punctured and the hand will be twisted..."