Smriti Irani On "Shaky Wicket" Against Congress' KL Sharma In Amethi: Priyank Kharge

Kalaburagi (Karnataka) [India]: Karnataka Minister and Congress leader Priyank Kharge on Saturday expressed confidence in party's Amethi candidate Kishori Lal Sharma "coming out with flying colours" against incumbent MP and BJP leader Smriti Irani in Lok Sabha polls.

Amethi parliamentary constituency will go to polls on May 20.

Claiming Irani is on a "shaky wicket" in Amethi, Kharge asked her to give the "report card" of her work in the constituency.

"Smriti Irani can say what she wants. She's on a shaky wicket. Let the results come out. Let her give the report card of what she has done in Amethi. Better sense will prevail this time and KL Sharma will come out with flying colours," Kharge said while speaking to ANI on Saturday.

The Amethi seat has been represented by Rahul since 2004, and he remained a member of Parliament from the constituency until 2019. His father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, too, was an elected member of Amethi in the Lower House from 1981 till his death in 1991. Sonia Gandhi contested elections from there in 1999 before passing the baton on to Rahul in 2004.

Sharma is pitted against Union Minister Smriti Irani, who claimed victory over Rahul Gandhi in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, flipping the Congress bastion seat.

After weeks of deliberations and speculations, Congress announced on Friday that Rahul Gandhi will be its candidate from the traditional Gandhi family stronghold of Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh, while KL Sharma will contest from Amethi in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.