Congress a spent force, BJP will win: Smriti Irani

Top Stories

Congress a spent force, BJP will win: Smriti Irani

She says the Congress is a spent force and the Mahagatbandhan (alliance) is doomed.

By Allan Jacob

  • Follow us on
  • google-news
  • whatsapp
  • telegram

Published: Tue 7 May 2019, 6:41 PM

Indian Textiles Minister and BJP candidate from Amethi, Smriti Irani is not one to hold back her punches. In this exclusive interview to Khaleej Times, she says the Congress is a spent force and the Mahagatbandhan (alliance) is doomed. Smriti says the BJP will win an absolute majority under PM Narendra Modi.
You have worked on the ground in Amethi. Do you think five years of toil will pay off this time?
For the first time Amethi has witnessed an election with the Congress president choosing another seat (in Wayanad) he deemed secure for himself. That in itself is an indication that Amethi is an impossibility for the Congress. It is interesting that irrespective of the Mahagatbandhanpromising their support, Rahul Gandhi felt insecure to look for another seat. Given all these circumstances, we are absolutely sure that under the leadership of Narendra Modi, we will win in Amethi.
Is Rahul Gandhi serious about Amethi?
I don't think Rahul Gandhi was serious about working in Amethi. Even today he made a false promise that he will meet the people on the day of voting, and he did not turn up. False promises are the very nature of Rahul Gandhi's political character.
What went wrong for the Congress and the opposition?
The Congress is a spent force in Uttar Pradesh. They were not able to seal their alliance with the Samajawadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party. The bickering till the end between the three parties showed the opposition cannot stay united, no matter what the cause. The fact that the opposition did not have a common vision for India was something that people pondered over, and questions were raised time and gain. Rahul worked at cross purposes, so did Ms Vadra (Priyanka). They talked of being in the battle only to cut votes and not to win. I think the Congress is in complete disarray not only in Uttar Pradesh but the rest of the country as well.
Are you preparing for a coalition government?
We are preparing for an absolute majority under the leadership of Narendra Modi. The fact that the Gatbandhan fell apart even before it began was significant. People have resoundingly said, 'Hindustan hai tayyar, phir ek bar Modi Sarkar' (India is ready for Modi government once again).
allan@khaleejtimes.com


More news from