BJP leader and Minister of Women and Child Development Smriti Irani on Monday said BJP fielded her against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi not because of she was a woman, but the party believed that only she could defeat him, in a message that it is the ability which matters and not the gender. Irani commented in reply to a suggestion that the government should consider granting fast-track approval to women real estate developers.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Smriti Irani said at a conference organised by realtors’ body CREDAI, “I would rather compete… with male developers…I was sent to Amethi not because I am a woman. I was sent to Amethi because I was the only person who could defeat that man (Rahul Gandhi).”
It may be recalled that Irani defeated Rahul Gandhi in Amethi, a pocket borough of the Nehru-Gandhi family, by about 55,000 votes in the 2019 general election. She had unsuccessfully contested against Gandhi in Amethi in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, where she lost by over one lakh votes. Irani said that she had requested the party workers not to organise any victory march, but instead reach out to the people and find out their problems.
Advertisement