In her most extensive interview so far in the 2024 campaign, Priyanka opened up to Sreenivasan Jain about a range of issues and controversies defining this election.
Asked about voters suggesting they will vote for Prime Minister Narendra Modi despite facing problems such as price rise and unemployment, due to the lack of an “alternative”, she says, “I don’t think the public trusts the media. So I don’t think the public is even going to tell you what they’re thinking.”
Asked about the PM’s divisive statements on Muslims and mangalsutra, the Congress leader says, “People don’t like it. It’s run its course.”
“If you ask people wherever I’m going, if I’m talking about the fact that he’s saying we’re going to steal their buffaloes, people are laughing…He’s telling lakhs and lakhs of people absolute lies that are not in our manifesto. I mean this is the prime minister of the country.”
When it comes to the PM’s allegation that the Congress has stopped speaking about Adani-Ambani because of “tempos of black money” being sent to the Congress, Priyanka points out – “He says my brother (Rahul Gandhi) doesn’t talk about Adani Ambani anymore. I mean I was with him in two meetings yesterday. He must have taken their name at least 12 times. So he is talking about them every day.”
Asked about chinks in the Congress’s armour and the exodus of several leaders, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra says, “This is the time to fight with everything we’ve got. And as we fight, we will build. Because when you fight what happens?...those who don’t have the stomach for the fight, those who are fearful, those who have cases and need to sort out their stuff, they leave.”
“As a sister, I would like my brother (Rahul Gandhi) to be a happy man”, she said. “I would like him to get married. I would like him to have kids. That's what I would like as a sister.”
Is there any breaking news update? “No. I wish there was.”
Watch.