Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the Congress will not be playing on the backfoot in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. He was speaking to reporters in Amethi after the announcement of his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra being appointed as the general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh East .
“Congress party is fighting a battle of ideologies. And the Congress party is not going to play on the backfoot anywhere, it will play on the front foot. It is fighting for its ideology. Be it Priyanka or Jyotiraditya, they are powerful leaders of the Congress and through these two young leaders we want to alter the politics of Uttar Pradesh,” he told reporters in Amethi.
When asked if Ms. Vadra will contest elections, Mr. Gandhi said it was upto her. “My main point is that we are not playing on the back foot anywhere, be it Gujarat or Uttar Pradesh. We do politics for the people and development, and wherever we get an opportunity, we will play on the front foot,” he said.
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Mr. Gandhi said he was not sending Ms. Vadra and Jyotiraditya Scindia, who was appointed as general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh West, to the State for just “two months” but on a mission for the party’s ideology.
“I have given Priyanka and Jyotiraditya a mission to fight for the the true ideology of the Congress party in U.P., that is ideology for the poor, weak, and to take everyone along in development. I have full faith that they will work, and what U.P. and its youths need, the Congress party can deliver...”
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The Amethi MP also said the entry of Ms. Vadra and Mr. Scindia would bring a “new kind of thought” to UP and “a positive change” in its politics. He was also personally happy about his sister’s entry into politics. “I’m happy that my sister, who is very capable and hard-working, is going to work with me. Jyotiraditya is also a dynamic young leader,” he said.
SP-BSP alliance
Mr. Gandhi also spoke about the SP-BSP alliance in U.P., saying that if the two parties wanted to hold talks in future, he had “no problem” with it.
“I have full respect for Mayawatiji and Akhileshji. All three of us have the same goal of defeating the BJP. We don’t have any animosity towards Mayawatiji and Akhileshji, there is affection. But we have to fight for the ideology of the Congress party, and so we will fight in U.P. with full force.”
Mr. Gandhi also said if required, his party was ready to co-operate with the BSP and SP in order to defeat the BJP. “We have many similarities in ideology (with Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav). Our fight is with the BJP. And wherever our cooperation is possible with Mayawatiji and Akhileshji, we are ready to co-operate.”
Mr. Gandhi also reached out to the youth of UP, saying his target was to make the State number one and to provide a new direction to farmers and the youth.
"I'm not talking about any caste or religion, if you are a youth from UP, you have witnessed how your state has been ruined. You have seen corruption. We want to fulfill a new dream along with you," he said.