Rahul Gandhi fires Amethi's imagination

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Amethi, April 20: The magic of the Nehru-Gandhi clan seems to be overbearing on this dusty Uttar Pradesh town where Rahul Gandhi, the youngest member of the dynasty to plunge into electoral politics, is in fray for the Lok Sabha polls.

That magical surname ‘Gandhi’ and the promise to complete his father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's dream for the constituency are enough to lead Rahul to a landslide victory against his rivals Ram Vilas Vedanti of BJP, Chandraprakash Mishra of BSP and nine others.

Expecting Congress president Sonia Gandhi to contest from Amethi, Samajwadi party did not field its candidate in the constituency.

As Rahul criss-crosses the constituency, he evokes the memories of his father. "He looks just like his father," says Durga Devi as she gets back to harvesting the wheat crop in nearby fields.

Rahul fires the imagination of the people of Amethi by promising to fulfill his father's dream for the constituency. "There is a work that my father had started, a dream he had dreamt. I come to you today saying allow me to turn that dream into reality," he tells the people here, charming them with his every move.

A Congress bastion, Amethi has in the past elected Rahul's parents and uncle. So strong is the family name in Amethi that the party has won 11 of the last 13 Lok Sabha polls.