It’s not looking good for the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Uttar Pradesh. The INDI Alliance of Samajwadi Party and Congress was leading in 40 out of 80 seats and the NDA is at 39. One of the biggest defeats of this election for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) comes in Amethi.
The big fight was between BJP’s Smriti Irani and Congress’ Kishori Lal Sharma . Irani, who is seeking re-election from Amethi was trailing the veteran leader, according to trends. She was behind by nearly 1.3 lakh votes, according to the Election Commission website.
Amethi is one of the important seats in the state and exit polls had predicted a close fight. A Congress bastion for several years, Irani defeated Rahul Gandhi in 2019 in what was a big blow for the Grand Old Party. In this election, the party trod carefully. The Gandhi scion decided to fight from his mother’s bastion of Rae Bareli and Congress fielded Kishori Lal Sharma from Amethi.
The soft-spoken leader who knows Amethi ‘very well’
Sharma is a longtime aide of the Gandhis; he has worked closely with the family from the time of Rajiv Gandhi. Soft-spoken, he earned a reputation in the party for his election management.
For years, he has worked behind the scenes. In both Amethi and Rae Bareli, he has managed the party’s election strategy. However, this is the first time he has contested a poll and the results are for all the see.
The 63-year-old has spent decades mediating between the Gandhi family and the voters, understanding the ground realities and challenges. He told The Indian Express after his nomination was announced that he had served in the region for 40 years and knows Amethi “very well”.
A Gandhi loyalist
Sharma is originally from Punjab’s Ludhiana. He came to Amethi in 1983 and worked for Rajiv Gandhi as a representative of the Youth Congress. He has been working in the state since. “Except 1981, I managed all of Rajiv ji’s remaining elections,” he told The Indian Express.
After Rajiv Gandhi died in 1991, Sharma’s bond with the family only grew stronger. He started working for the former prime minister’s widow, Sonia Gandhi and played a big role in the Congress’ electoral victory in Rae Bareli.
Sonia took over the reins of the party in 1988 and fielded Satish Sharma, thus reviving the fortunes of the Grand Old Party in the constituency. He retook the seats for the Congress.
But throughout all of his, KL Sharma worked closely with Sonia. He frequently travelled to Amethi and Rae Bareli.
In 1999, Sonia Gandhi contested from the Ballari seat in Karnataka. And Sharma played a key role in the first electoral victory. In elections that followed, Sonia contested from Rae Bareli. She first contested in 2004 and continued until 2019 and Rahul contested from Amethi. Sharma managed the affairs of the party in both these constituencies.
In 2014, Rahul wanted to hire his own team in Amethi. That is when Sharma put all his efforts behind Rae Bareli, a seat the Congress has managed to retain despite the Modi waves in 2014 and 2019. A source was quoted by The Indian Express as saying that Rahul’s big loss to Smriti Irani in the last Lok Sabha election could have something to do with the change.
Sharma then has been Congress’ main man in Amethi and Rae Bareli. And it was time he got his reward.
When this year, Congress decided to field him from Rae Bareli, Priyanka hailed the choice. “Our family has had long association with Kishorilal Sharma ji. He has always been dedicated to serving people of Amethi and Rae Bareli,” she wrote on X.
किशोरी भैया, मुझे कभी कोई शक नहीं था, मुझे शुरू से यक़ीन था कि आप जीतोगे। आपको और अमेठी के मेरे प्यारे भाइयों और बहनों को हार्दिक बधाई ! pic.twitter.com/JzH5Gr3z30
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) June 4, 2024
Now after the win, she put out an emotional post with a throwback picture. “Kishori bhaiya, I never doubted, I believed from the beginning that you will win. Many congratulations to you and my brothers and sisters from Amethi.”
With this win, Amethi will return to the Grand Old Party, giving the Congress one more reason to celebrate.
With inputs from agencies
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