‘Making space in her party’: Smriti Irani on ‘active’ Priyanka Gandhi in UP
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has been the Congress’ leading voice against the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and has regularly taken on chief minister Yogi Adityanath over a range of issues.
Union minister Smriti Irani Saturday dismissed Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s frequent forays into Uttar Pradesh as something she needed to do to make her space in the party.
“Priyanka is only active in her own party, Congress, because she is working to make space for herself in her own party,” she said at the Hindustan Samagam event in Lucknow.
Priyanka who was officially inducted into the Congress in January last year and put in charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh, had extensively canvassed in the general elections but could not prevent a severe drubbing for the party. The loss included that of her brother and former Congress president Rahul Gandhi who lost to Irani at Amethi.
Earlier this month, her campaign in the Delhi assembly elections also failed to change the Congress’ fortune where it drew a blank for the second successive time and saw its vote share plunge.
Following the hammering at the Delhi elections, Priyanka acknowledged that it is a time of struggle for the Congress.
In recent times, Priyanka has visited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s constituency Varanasi and Azamgarh. Both visits were aimed at meeting activists held during protests against the amended Citizenship Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC).
She has also been the Congress’ leading voice against the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and has regularly taken on chief minister Yogi Adityanath over a range of issues.
Over the past week, three Congress-ruled states – Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh - have offered to send her to the Rajya Sabha. Priyanka herself has not commented on the overtures of the Congress state governments.