New Delhi:
Days after notifying that Congress supremo Rahul Gandhi will remain party’s prime ministerial candidate in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the Congress on Tuesday said that along with opposition parties, it would unanimously choose the candidate for the top job and will back any candidate against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Responding to questions from women journalist on whether the party will back Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee or Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati as a prime ministerial candidate, Rahul Gandhi said he would support any candidate able to defeat the BJP and RSS.
"Congress President @RahulGandhi met and interacted with women journalists earlier this evening and what a wonderful interaction it was!" the party posted from the official Twitter handle.
Congress President @RahulGandhi met and interacted with women journalists earlier this evening and what a wonderful interaction it was! pic.twitter.com/FskLSXhciF
— Congress (@INCIndia) July 24, 2018
The party is ready to select the leader of a regional party as the prime ministerial nominee if it is able to garner numbers in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections or if others don’t agree on a Congress nominee, according to media reports. Â
Victory in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar would be crucial as they jointly constitute 22 per cent of seats in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi said.
He further noted that BJP’s allies such as Shiv Sena and Telegu Desam Party (TDP) were already annoyed with the party, which could hand an added advantage to the Congress.
The Congress joined hands with Rashtriya Janata Dal and Samajwadi Party and fought the Bihar and Uttar Pradesh elections respectively.
(With inputs from agencies)
