Was Rahul Gandhi 'scared' to contest from Amethi in 2024 elections? SP MP Shiv Patel makes shocking allegation

Samajwadi Party MP Shiv Pal Singh Patel claimed Rahul Gandhi was "so scared" to contest from Amethi in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections that he chose Raebareli instead. Patel also claimed that the Congress would not have won a single seat in Uttar Pradesh in the 2024 polls without its alliance with SP.

Updated : Oct 04, 2026, 03:12 PM IST

Samajwadi Party MP Shiv Pal Singh Patel has made a sharp allegation against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, claiming that he was "so scared" to contest from Amethi in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections that he chose to contest from Raebareli instead. Patel also claimed that Gandhi only agreed to contest the election after SP chief Akhilesh Yadav persuaded him to do so. The remarks come at a time when the Samajwadi Party and Congress are in discussions over a seat-sharing formula for the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, scheduled for early next year.

"Had there been no alliance, they wouldn't have won a single seat. It even reached a point where their top leader, Rahul Gandhi, was ready to give up his seat. He contested from elsewhere (Raebareli) instead of Amethi. He was so scared,” Patel told PTI.

The SP MP further claimed that Akhilesh Yadav had to personally convince Gandhi to contest the election. "It was our national president who reassured and persuaded him, asking him to contest and warning that if he didn't, he (Akhilesh) would field his own candidate. Only then did Gandhi agree to contest. Otherwise, he was extremely reluctant to run for that traditional seat, the one said to belong to the Nehru family. Gandhi only managed to win it because of that persuasion," Patel said.

Patel also credited the SP-Congress alliance for the Congress' performance in Uttar Pradesh, claiming that the SP transferred its votes to the Congress on seats allotted to Rahul Gandhi's party. "That is precisely how they managed to win those six seats. We secured 37 seats. We are far ahead of Congress in every respect. They shouldn't ask for more than 50, and should feel happy. The Congress should cooperate, rather than making all sorts of absurd or negative remarks," he said.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Samajwadi Party emerged as the single-largest party in Uttar Pradesh, winning 37 of the state's 80 seats, including Faizabad, which encompasses the temple town of Ayodhya. The Congress won six seats, while the BJP was reduced to 33.

READ | OTT Releases This Week: Dupahiya 2, Pooja Meri Jaan; new movies and shows to watch this Gandhi Jayanti weekend