‘Will be Defeated by 2.5L Votes’: BJP Mocks Amethi’s ‘Dynastic Aspirant’ Robert Vadra But Shehzad Poonawalla’s Brother Differs

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took a swipe at the Congress party after Robert Vadra, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s husband, hinted at his political debut, showing interest in contesting from Amethi in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The Saffron party questioned Vadra’s credentials and said the Congress could not get over nepotism.

BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa said, “From what he said, one thing is very clear that they (Congress) cannot come out of dynastic politics. What is he (Robert Vadra) apart from being the son-in-law of the Gandhi family that people will expect something from him? What kind of certificate do you (Robert Vadra) have?” he asked.

“Four power centres have been built here, one is of Sonia Gandhi, one of Rahul Gandhi, one is of Priyanka Gandhi, and one is of Kharge. These people have ruined this country because of nepotism and still they do not want to change themselves,” he added.

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak also reacted to Vadra’s statement and took a dig at the Congress party.

Pathak said that the Bharatiya Janata Party had not received any application from his side, and if he will contest from Congress, it is a concern of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Speaking to news agency ANI, Pathak said, “We have not yet received any application from Robert Vadra’s side. If he has applied to the Congress Party then it is the concern of his mother-in-law, his brother-in-law. Bharatiya Janata Party has also not received any application.”

BJP MP Lahar Singh Siroya responded to Vadra’s comments and took to X (formerly Twitter) saying, “Robert Vadra wanting to contest the Amethi seat reminds me of a saying in Hindi: ‘When an elephant is stuck in a swamp, even a frog ends up kicking it.’ That is the state of the Congress party today.”

However, BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla differed from the collective view of BJP leaders and said the Saffron party would get defeated in Amethi.

“BJP will be defeated in Amethi by over 50,000 votes. But if someone like Robert Vadra ji does contest, then the margin of defeat for the BJP may widen to 2/2.5 lacs,” he wrote on X.

Congress is yet to announce the name of its candidate in the party’s stronghold Amethi seat in Uttar Pradesh but Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra on Thursday said the people of Amethi expect him to fight the Lok Sabha elections against BJP’s Smriti Irani.

Vadra, the husband of Priyanka Gandhi, said the people of Amethi are not happy with sitting MP Irani, who defeated Rahul Gandhi in 2019, as she is busying bashing the Gandhi family.

“The people of Amethi expect me to represent their constituency if I decide to become a member of Parliament…For years, the Gandhi family worked hard in Rae Bareli, Amethi and Sultanpur…The people of Amethi are really troubled by the current Member of Parliament, they think they have made a mistake by electing her…,” he told ANI.

Congress scion Rahul Gandhi, who represented Amethi in Parliament since 2002, lost the seat to BJP’s Smriti Irani in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls by a margin of about 55000 votes but elected from Kerala’s Wayanad. The party has again fielded him from Wayanad amid growing demand that he contest from Amethi too. There are speculations as well about Priyanka Gandhi contesting from Rae Bareli but the party’s high command has not taken the final call.

Meanwhile, Irani said the delay by Congress to declare their candidate from Amethi is a sign of their defeat.

It was not the first time Vadra expressed interest in contesting elections. In 2022, too, he said he was ready to make his political debut if people wanted him to do so. Vadra faces multiple corruption charges, including an Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation relating to alleged money laundering in the purchase of a property in London in the United Kingdom.