The Congress on Thursday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party for fielding BJP National President Amit Shah from Gujarat’s Gandhinagar, which is represented by senior leader LK Advani.
Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala claimed that the BJP had “snatched” Advani’s seat. “First Shri Lal Krishna Advani was forcefully sent to Marg Darshak Mandal and now his parliamentary constituency has been snatched,” Surjewala tweeted. “If PM Narendra Modi cannot respect Lal Krishna Advani, how will he respect the wishes of the people?”
Advani was made a member of the margdarshak mandal or group of mentors after the BJP came to power in 2014.
Surjewala ended the tweet with “BJP bhagao, desh bachao” or “remove BJP, save country”.
Gandhinagar will go to the polls on April 23 along all the other 25 seats of Gujarat. Gujarat will vote in phase three of the seven-phase Lok Sabha polls.
The BJP on Thursday released its first list of 184 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls. Shah, who was elected to the Rajya Sabha in August 2017, will contest the Lok Sabha elections for the first time. His term in the Rajya Sabha ends in 2023.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will contest from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, while Union minister Smriti Irani has been fielded from Amethi against Congress President Rahul Gandhi.
The 2019 General Elections will be held from April 11 to May 19 in seven phases, and the results will be announced on May 23. The last date for filing nominations for the first phase of elections is March 25.
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