Prodding his party cadres to prepare for the next assembly elections in Gujarat, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, while visiting the party headquarters in Ahmedabad on Saturday, said his party will defeat the ruling BJP as it did in Ayodhya during the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.
“The way we defeated the BJP in Ayodhya, we are going to defeat them in Gujarat... Before the (Lok Sabha elections), could anyone think that BJP will lose in Ayodhya? No. Could you imagine that (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi will win with a small margin (from Varanasi seat). The way they lost in Ayodhya, they are going to do so here too. You need to do just one thing. Tell people of Gujarat not to fear. If the people of the state fights without fear, BJP will not be able to withstand,” Gandhi said while addressing party workers in Ahmedabad.
Gandhi highlighting the contribution of Gujaratis in forming the Congress party, “If the Congress party exists today, it is because the party, the feeling and the thought, began from Gujarat.” During his speech, Gandhi pointed out that workers in his party did not fear the leaders and talked openly about issues confronting the party. “People have come to me and told me that they have disliked my actions... Our party workers do not fear in speaking their minds, and nor do we have any fear listening to voices of our workers. In BJP, no one in the team of Narendra Modi like him. But they are afraid. Their leaders and workers do not have the strength (to speak out against PM Modi),” he added.
He also indirectly touched upon the flaws in the Congress party in Gujarat. “I have to say that the Congress party in Gujarat has shortcomings,” Gandhi said, adding that the party will ensure that leaders who can race in the poll battle will be fielded. “This work has to be done seriously. In the last elections, we did not fight properly with the BJP... We have three years now. In three years, we should ensure that we cross the finish line and leave it far behind,” he added. The next assembly elections in Gujarat are due in 2027.
Talking pot-shots at PM Modi for the comments made during Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi said, “If you have a direct connection with God, how did you lose Ayodhya.” Rahul Gandhi is also expected to meet the families of the victims of the TRP Mall fire in Rajkot.