Rahul Gandhi kicks off campaigning in Congress stronghold Amethi

Congress president Rahul Gandhi kicked off his campaigning for the next year’s general elections in Amethi on Wednesday.

Rahul, who is on a two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency, met the family of the farmer who died in ‘Jais Mandi’ following a cardiac arrest on May 4.

Taking a jibe at the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) promise of bullet trains, he said, “It should not be called a bullet train. It should be referred to as a magic train. It will never be constructed if at all it is ever made it is going to be in Congress regime.”

Also Read: Rahul Gandhi: Narendra Modi’s bullet train was ‘like a magic train’

BJP chief Amit Shah and Congress President Rahul Gandhi, both key players in next year’s Lok Sabha polls, are heading this week for Uttar Pradesh, the state that sends the maximum number of lawmakers to the Lok Sabha. The BJP Chief’s visit is seen as another mark of special attention for the crucial state, where the BJP recently suffered a string of defeats in by-elections. Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had started the party’s 2019 campaign from the state.

The dates of the visits of Shah and Gandhi coincide — July 4 and 5. The two leaders, though, will be in different parts of the state – Rahul Gandhi will be his Lok Sabha constituency Amethi, where his last visit was cancelled for security reasons.

Shah meanwhile, will head for Mirzapur, a district in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s constituency, Varanasi.