The Indian Express (Delhi Edition)
Rahul does not have courage to contest from Amethi: Rajnath
SENIOR BJP leader Rajnath Singh Thursday took a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, alleging that after his defeat from the Amethi Lok Sabha seat in 2019, he does not have the courage to stand from there this time.
Speaking at an election meeting in Pathanamthitta Lok Sabha seat to garner support for Anil K Antony, Singh praised the BJP candidate’s father, Congress stalwart A K Antony, and called him a disciplined and principled person whose honesty and integrity cannot be questioned.
He said he was surprised on reading Antony's statement that Anil Antony should lose in the Lok Sabha polls. “I know he (A K Antony) is a principled person and I understand his compulsions. It is difficult for him to support Anil Antony. However… Anil is your son. You (A K Antony) may not vote for him or canvass votes for him, but you are his father, so I request that your blessings be with him,” Singh said.
On Gandhi, Singh said the Congress leader migrated to Kerala from Uttar Pradesh , following his defeat in Amethi. “The people of Wayanad will not make him their MP,” he said.
Singh also said that while various space programmes and projects were being launched in the country, "the launching of Congress' young leader has not happened for the last 20 years".
"The Congress party's 'Rahulyaan' has neither been launched nor has it landed anywhere," he said, taking a dig at the Congress MP from Wayanad.
During his speech, the BJP leader also accused the Congress and the LDF of being untrustworthy, alleging that they pretend to fight each other in Kerala, while outside it they are campaigning together against the BJP. He also alleged that Kerala was in a bad shape due to the successive governments of the Congress-led UDF and the CPI(M)-LED LDF in the state.