While the BJP has planned several rallies today, the Congress led by Rahul Gandhi is promoting its manifesto claiming that it can change the face of India.
Tag: Rahul Gandhi
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Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi Vs CPI’s Annie Raja: Know Who Is Richer? |
NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Communist Party of India’s (CPI) Annie Raja, both prominent contenders for Kerala’s Wayanad seat in the upcoming Lok Sabha Election 2024, have disclosed their financial assets, sparking interest and comparisons.
Rahul Gandhi’s Net Worth
Rahul Gandhi, filing his nomination in Kerala’s Wayanad, revealed assets worth Rs 20 crore, conspicuously devoid of vehicle or residential property ownership. His movable assets stand at Rs 9.24 crore, inclusive of bank deposits, bonds, shares, mutual funds, and jewellery. Notably, Gandhi’s immovable assets, totalling Rs 11.15 crore, encompass agricultural land in Delhi and office space in Gurugram, the former co-owned with sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. His shareholdings, valued at Rs 4.3 crore, include investments in various prominent companies like Asian Paints, Infosys, and Tata Consultancy Services.
Legal Disputes And Cases
Gandhi’s affidavit further discloses his involvement in legal disputes, notably a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), alongside defamation complaints by BJP members and a criminal conspiracy case related to Associated Journals Limited.
Annie Raja’s Assets
In contrast, CPI’s Annie Raja’s declared assets amount to a modest Rs 72 lakh, with Rs 71 lakh attributed to inherited property. Her financial holdings consist mainly of minimal cash in hand, bank deposits, jewellery, and immovable property. She has declared only Rs 10,000 cash in hand, bank deposits worth Rs 62,000, jewellery worth Rs 25,000 and an inherited property worth Rs 71 lakh. Annie Raja is the general secretary of the CPI’s National Federation of Indian Women and the wife of the party’s general secretary D Raja.
The Electoral Duel In Wayanad
Gandhi, the incumbent from Wayanad, faces a formidable challenge from Annie Raja and state BJP chief K Surendran in the forthcoming elections, scheduled for April 26. Kerala’s parliamentary constituencies will witness polling as part of the nationwide polls, with the nomination deadline set for April 4.
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`Rahul Gandhi Should Fight From BJP`s Stronghold, Not From Kerala`: CPI(M) Slams Congress
CPI (M) leader Subhashini Ali raised a question regarding Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s candidacy from the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency and asked why the Congress leader is not fighting from the BJP stronghold.
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Rahul Gandhi Talks To Arvind Kejriwal’s Family Over Call, Likely To Meet Them Today: Sources |
As per Zee News sources, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi conversed with Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s family over the phone, affirming his party’s support in every possible manner, following the arrest of the AAP leader by Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a liquor policy case. Rahul plans to attempt a meeting with either Kejriwal or his family to provide additional legal aid, according to the source.
A group from the ED visited Kejriwal’s home on Thursday to question him about the liquor policy case. In a turn of events, Kejriwal was arrested during a search of his residence after failing to secure interim protection from the Delhi High Court and then taken to the ED’s headquarters. Following the arrest of the governing CM, AAP members and leaders showed solidarity with Kejriwal after his arrest, while leaders from the INDIA bloc also offered their support to the AAP leader. Meanwhile, BJP officials backed the ED’s measures against the Delhi Chief Minister, stressing the importance of truth prevailing.
Referring to the detention of two opposition chief ministers and the suspension of a bank account belonging to the Congress party, Atishi, a Delhi Minister and leader of the Aam Aadmi Party, accused the BJP of attempting to win elections through undemocratic means. “…The BJP is murdering democracy. They’ve detained two opposition chief ministers (first Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, now Kejriwal) and blocked a party’s bank account. Is this the BJP’s strategy for winning elections?…Cease politicizing through the Enforcement Directorate, refrain from wielding it as a tool,” she stated.
Earlier, Delhi Minister Atishi through a ‘X’ post said that the party had moved to the Supreme Court and urged an urgent hearing. “We have moved the Supreme Court to quash the arrest of Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal by ED. We have asked for an urgent hearing by the Supreme Court tonight itself,” Atishi wrote.
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Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Left’s Wayanad Bid Throws Another Challenge For Rahul Gandhi, Congress-Led INDI Alliance |
In a move that hints at more rifts in the Congress-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc, the CPI(M) today announced its candidate fro the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency in Kerala, curently held by Rahul Gandhi. The CPI(M) indirectly asked Congress to vacate the seat for the Left pary. The move puts the Congress on backfoot once again as the INDIA bloc parties have been posing a new challenge to the grand old party every other day.
CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat said, “CPI has declared its candidate for the seat in Wayanad, Comrade Annie Raja, who has played a key role in ‘Mahila Andholan’. Now she will be the candidate from the side of the whole LDF. Rahul Gandhi and Congress need to think, they say that their fight is against BJP. In Kerala, if you come and fight against Left, what message are you giving? So they need to think about their seat once again.”
In the 2019 elections, the CPI had fielded 4 candidates but lost on all seats. Of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, Congress bagged 15, the Indian Union Muslim League two and the CPI(M), KC(M), and RSP won 1 seat each.
Kerala Dare For Congress
The Communist Party of India (CPI) has announced its first list of four candidates for Lok Sabha elections in Kerala yesterday. The CPI fielded Pannian Raveendran from Thiruvananthapuram, Annie Raja from Wayanad, VS Sunil Kumar from Thrissur and Arun Kumar from Mavelikara. Notably, all of the four seats are currently held by the Congress party – Rahul Gandhi from Wayanad and Shashi Tharoor from Thiruvananthapuram, T. N. Prathapan from Thrissur and Kodikunnil Suresh from the Mavelikara seat. By announcing the candidate for these seats first, CPI has played a similar card like Akhilesh Yadav did in Uttar Pradesh. Now, the ball is in Congress party’s court whether it accepts or rejects the Left party’s offer.
The Left party has urged Congress to not contest from Kerala and insteat focus on North where the BJP is very strong. Just like Trinamool Congress in Bengal, Left and its allies want Congress to leave Kerala to them only.
Congress On Backfoot
Congress is already on a backfoot when it comes to seat sharing as part of the INDIA bloc. While Mamata Banerjee has already refused to ally with Congress or Left in Bengal saying that TMC will contest all 42 seats alone against the BJP. Similarly, the AAP said that it will contest all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab alone. While the AAP and SP sealed seat sharing deal with Congress for some states, that made Congress minorty shareholder. In Uttar Pradesh, Congress has just got 17 seats out of the 80 while in Delhi, it has got 3 out of seven seats.
Will Rahul Gandhi Quit Wayanad?
It’s unlikely that Rahul Gandhi will leave the Wayanad seat. Recently, Rahul Gandhi rushed to the Wayanad after elephant attacks happened in the region. Also, Gandhi won from the Wayanad seat but lost from Amethi. There are very low chances of Rahul Gandhi contesting from Amethi once again. Thus, it’s likely that while Congress may agree to take one or two step back in Kerala to appease the Left, but it may go for a friendly fight from the Wayanad seat.
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‘1st Step Will Be Caste Census…’: Priyanka, Rahul Gandhi Sound Poll Buggle In Uttar Pradesh |
Congress Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday joined the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra led by party MP Rahul Gandhi in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh. While addressing the crowd the brother-sister duo slammed the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) over various issues, some of the top ones were the caste census and paper leaks in UP Police Constable Examinations.
Taking a dig at the Modi government, Rahul Gandhi said that if the majority wants to have the caste census, then the first step after the election will be the caste census. “In this country there are 50% backwards, 15% minorities, 15% Dalit, and 8% Adivasi… How many of these are in media, none… You’ll see them in the list of MGNREGA but not in the big companies,” Gandhi said, adding that 90% of people don’t get any participation.
Slamming PM Modi for his political tactics, Rahul said that the Modi government is distracting Indians by launching gimmicks like Bollywood and surgical strikes and ignoring crucial issues like unemployment, paper leaks, and the true well-being of the citizens. He said, “This is what the BJP system is.” He further added that patriots unite the country and do not work to disintegrate it (Deshbhakt mohabbat ki dukaan kholte hain, nafrat ke bazaar nahi chalaate).
Meanwhile, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took a shot at the rising unemployment rates under the BJP’s rule. “As the BJP’s government is formed in the centre and state, unemployment rates have increased,” she asserted. She linked unemployment to a lack of facilities and persistent paper leaks, making it clear that development hinges on gainful employment. She said that the brass industry is stagnant, there is no development after the BJP’s rule.
As the UP Police Constable examinations are scheduled for a re-examination, Priyanka Vadra said that “the 28 lakh students wrote the exam but the paper was leaked.” She said that until the paper leaks are stopped, there will be no development. She urged the voters to cast their votes based on their experiences.
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Congress, AAP Join Hands For Lok Sabha Elections, Reveal Seat-Sharing Deal For 3 States, 2 UTs |
New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress have forged an alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The parties have announced their seat-sharing arrangements for Delhi, Gujarat and Haryana. In Gujarat, the Congress will fight for 24 seats, AAP for 2; in Haryana, the Congress will vie for 9 seats, AAP for one seat; in Delhi, AAP will have the upper hand with four seats, the Congress with 3 seats.
“Congress will contest on 24 seats out of 26 in Gujarat. AAP will field its candidates on 2 seats – Bharuch and Bhavnagar,” said Mukul Wasnik, Congress general secretary and MP. “In Haryana, which has 10 Lok Sabha seats, Congress will contest on 9. AAP will have its candidates on 1 seat – in Kurukshetra,” he added.
Delhi | Congress and AAP announce seat-sharing in Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Chandigarh and Goa
In Delhi (7 seats), Congress to contest on 3 and AAP on 4
In Gujarat (26 seats), Congress to contest on 24 and AAP on 2 (in Bharuch and Bhavnagar)
In Haryana (10 seats), Congress to… pic.twitter.com/vCauAdvkUm
— ANI (@ANI) February 24, 2024In Delhi, AAP will compete in New Delhi, West Delhi, South Delhi and East Delhi; the Congress will challenge in Chandni Chowk, North East and North West seats. Wasnik said that after a long discussion, it was agreed that the Congress will contest in the Chandigarh seat. In Goa, the Congress will contest both the Lok Sabha seats.
The two parties did not comment on Punjab, where AAP had formed a government in 2022 after ousting the Congress. Earlier this month, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal declared that his party will contest all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab. AAP and Congress, former adversaries in Punjab and Delhi, had contested the Chandigarh mayoral elections in alliance last month and won with the Supreme Court’s intervention.
“The country is facing a grave situation – the BJP Government is destroying all institutions one by one, the elections are being ‘rigged’ and Opposition leaders are being jailed to win elections, the farmers are being treated unjustly, the people of the country are suffering from unemployment and inflation…the country needs an honest and strong alternative,” said AAP MP Sandeep Pathak after announcing the alliance.
“With that in mind, we set aside our own political interests and kept the interest of the nation in mind. We came together in this alliance. The country is more important than the party. This election will not be fought as Congress versus AAP, but as INDIA versus BJP,” he added.
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INDI Alliance Back On Track? Congress Confident Of Seat-Sharing Deal With TMC, AAP Soon |
New Delhi: The Congress is hopeful of soon finalising the Lok Sabha poll seat-sharing arrangements with INDIA bloc allies AAP and TMC, sources said on Friday, days after the principal opposition party arrived at an understanding with the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh. Sources said while the talks with the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP have almost been concluded, discussions are still underway with the Mamata Banerjee’s TMC.
The sources expressed hope the leadership would work out a solution soon accommodating the expectations of all parties.The TMC, which is the ruling party in West Bengal, has sought two seats in Assam and one in Meghalaya, which are being discussed. But a senior leader said the Congress is not keen to give away the Meghalaya seat.
There are 14 seats in Assam and two in Meghalaya. As for the understanding with the AAP, the talks between the two parties are almost over with the AAP contesting four seats in Delhi and the Congress three.However, the sources said the AAP has also sought one seat in Haryana and two in Gujarat which included Bharuch, where the late Congress leader Ahmed Patel hailed from. The AAP has already declared Chaitar Vasava as its candidate on the seat.
The sources, however, said Rahul Gandhi is learnt to have put his foot down on the seat considering the party is “emotionally attached” to due it being Patel’s home turf. Patel’s son and daughter are seeking a ticket from Bharuch and talks are being held with the AAP leadership to agree to another seat.
Patel’s son Faisal, who is a contender for the seat, said in a post on X, “Honorable Shri Rahul Gandhi Ji, you listened to me and the Bharuch Congress workers.” “By supporting us, I and my fellow Bharuch Congress workers have been honored. I promise you that I will live up to your faith by winning the Bharuch Lok Sabha,” he said indicating that the Bharuch seat would remain with the Congress.
INDIA bloc parties are together and will fight the polls in alliance, the sources said.A senior party leader also said that seat-sharing talks in Maharashtra are over after top party leadership held discussions with leaders of Shiv Sena (UBT) Uddhav Thackeray and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar in the MVA.
The sources said a formal announcement is delayed because of seats to be given to Prakash Amvedkar’s party.Meanwhile, AAP leaders also said certain new developments are delaying an official seat-sharing announcement with the Congress.
The sources claimed the Congress has expressed willingness to contest North East, Chandni Chowk and North West Delhi seats. Earlier, an agreement was reached that the Congress will contest East, North East and Chandni Chowk seats. Udit Raj won from North West Delhi Lok Sabha seat as a BJP candidate in 2014 polls. He quit the BJP and joined the Congress after being denied a ticket in 2019.
All the 7 Lok Sabha seats in Delhi including North West Delhi were currently held by the BJP. Raj is considered as a front runner probable of the Congress from the seat.
Earlier in the day, AAP general secretary (organisation) Sandeep Pathak in a press conference said that the talks between the two parties are in the “final stages”. Announcements for all the states will be made simultaneously, hopefully “very soon”, he said.Pathak sought to play down the development related to Bharuch seat, saying “its not a big deal.”
Faisal on Thursday said that if Bharuch Lok Sabha seat went to the AAP, he and other “conscientious” Congress workers will not support its candidate. Pathak said, “We will settle the issue mutually. In an alliance such situations and statements come up. We will address it maturely.”
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‘Glad That Congress Has Accepted ‘Amethi’ Challenge’ For Rahul Gandhi: Smriti Irani |
AMETHI: Union Minister and senior BJP leader Smriti Irani on Tuesday said that she was glad to hear that the Congress party has accepted her challenge to field Rahul Gandhi from Amethi – her Lok Sabha constituency where she had defeted the former Congress president in 2019 polls. Irani had challenged the former Congress chief to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha polls from Amethi without taking help from the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party and without going to Wayanad – his current Lok Sabha constituency.
Hitting back at senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, Irani told reporters, “I am happy that Jairam Ramesh has accepted my challenge that Rahul Gandhi is ready to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha polls without the help from Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawati. I wish that the CWC (Congress Working Committee) would immediately accept Ramesh’s proposal.”
Calling herself an ordinary BJP worker, Irani said that she awaits a formal announcement from the Congress party in this regard.
“I once again say, since Jairam Ramesh has said that Rahul Gandhi is ready to accept our challenge, our party workers from Amethi are eagerly waiting… Rahul Gandhi through the CWC should make an announcement (about him contesting the polls from Amethi and not Wayanad),” added Irani, who had defeated Rahul Gandhi from Amethi in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
#WATCH | Amethi: On the statement of Congress General Secretary (Communication) Jairam Ramesh, Union Minister and Lok Sabha MP from Amethi, Smriti Irani says, “I am happy that Jairam Ramesh has accepted my challenge that Rahul Gandhi without Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati is ready… pic.twitter.com/kozHZdaCy7
— ANI (@ANI) February 20, 2024
Irani, who is in Amethi these days, attacked the Congress party and said that the empty streets that greeted Rahul Gandhi on Monday are a reflection of the people of Amethi’s anger towards the Gandhi family.
Anger In Amethi Against Gandhi Family: Irani
The BJP MP from Amethi spoke to the media on Monday and said, “The anger of the people of Amethi against the Gandhi family is visible. Today, when Rahul Gandhi) arrived, he was welcomed by empty streets. The anger of those who were deprived of development in Amethi has transformed into empty streets for the visit of the Gandhi family.”
Speaking to the media Irani said, “In 2014, Amethi was promised a ‘Badlaav ki Raajneeti’ (politics of change) under our Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Hence, Amethi received an investment of Rs 6,523 crore in the Investors Summit held in the national capital.”
“This was not a memorandum of understanding, ‘ye dharatal par implement hua nivesh hai.’ From the period of independence till 2014, when Prime Minister Modi became PM, the small-scale industry in Amethi only received Rs 500 crore in over 60 years,” she said.
“However, in the 10 years of PM Modi’s tenure, Rs 2107 crore was given to the same small-scale industry sector in Amethi so that over one lakh beneficiaries could start their small-scale industries,” said Irani.
Dare Rahul To Contest From Amethi Alone: Irani
Taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi, Irani said, “Perhaps this is also the reason why the people of Amethi remained unavailable to welcome the people who did not serve Amethi well.”
“The people of Amethi also haven’t forgotten that this particular person who had mentioned Amethi and said that ‘yaha ke logo ki samjh theek nahi hai’. This is the reason why the people of this constituency are angry,” she said.
“The Ram Bhakts of Amethi are also angered with the fact that the former MP of Amethi and the Gandhi family rejected the invitation for Ram Lalla’s life Pran Prathistha ceremony,” she stated. “The anger of those who were deprived of development in Amethi has today transformed into empty streets for the visit of the Gandhi family,” said Irani.
Rahul Gandhi arrived in Amethi, the parliamentary seat he represented earlier on Monday, the same day, Smriti Irani began her four-day visit to the Uttar Pradesh town.
Amethi used to be a Congress stronghold in Uttar Pradesh, where Rahul Gandhi lost to Smriti Irani by a margin of around 55,000 votes in the 2019 elections.
The Congress is still undecided on whether Rahul Gandhi will attempt to regain the Congress stronghold, especially since Sonia Gandhi has also left Rae Bareili for the Rajya Sabha.
Rahul Gandhi had won Lok Sabha elections from erstwhile Nehru-Gandhi family bastion Amethi three times until the 2019 general elections when he faced defeat from Smriti Irani. Rahul Gandhi, however, won from Wayanad in Kerala, the second seat he contested in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
Rahul Gandhi reached Amethi on Monday as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, the campaign kicked off by him on January 14 from Thoubal in Manipur in the run-up to the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Although it is improbable that the two leaders come face-to-face with each other, the coincidence proceeds ahead of the ensuing Lok Sabha elections in Amethi and beyond.
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Smriti Irani Vs Rahul Gandhi Face-Off In Amethi Today But Will RaGa Contest From UP Seat Again? |
Ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, Rahul Gandhi is on the last leg of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. Rahul Gandhi will be in Amethi today and the current MP from the seat Smriti Irani will also reach her constituency on a four-day tour today. Irani had defeated Gandhi from the seat in the 2019 parliamentary elections. While Rahul Gandhi lost from Amethi, he won the Wayanad seat thus retaining his Lok Sabha membership. Now, with the two leaders again touring the hot seat, the question is – whether Rahul Gandhi will again challenge Smriti Irani from the seat.
Rahul To Contest From Amethi?
For quite some time, there have been rumours within the Congress that Rahul Gandhi might contest elections from Amethi once again. Not contesting from here may send a wrong message in the Hindi-speaking region. Reacting to the question, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “CEC will decide on who will contest from Amethi. Rahul Gandhi has been an MP from Amethi thrice. His father Rajiv Gandhi also used to contest from Amethi. It is a very important constituency for the Congress party.”
With Sonia Gandhi moving to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan, the Congress party has shunned its lone Lok Sabha seat from Uttar Pradesh. Now, it will be important to see who will be Congress candidates from the Amethi and Raebareli.
Smriti’s Challenge From Kerala
A few days ago, Smriti Irani had said during her visit to Kerala that she sent the current Wayanad MP to the seat from Uttar Pradesh. She urged the voters to ensure that he did not get another opportunity for the seat again. On the other hand, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi are scheduled to hold a rally at 4 PM in Babuganj, Amethi.
Amethi Remains A Hot Seat
While Rahul may stay in Amethi for around 12 hours, Irani will stay put in the constituency for four days. This is perhaps the second time when both will be present in Amethi at the same time. However, the possibility of a face-to-face encounter between Rahul and Smriti is low as their schedules are different.
Smriti usually visits Amethi frequently. This time, she is planning to stay for four days. Smriti will listen to people’s issues through a Jan Samvad program. She will be present at her homecoming program on February 22. Smriti Irani is likely to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Amethi again. She has been consistently criticizing Rahul Gandhi.