"Not contesting to lose..." Congress's candidate from Amethi KL Sharma

"Not contesting to lose. I have faith in the alliance," Sharma said in an interview with ANI.

He said that the Amethi constituency was developed by the Gandhi family and urged voters to vote for the INDIA bloc based on their development work.

"The Gandhi family developed this constituency. Vote for us based on our development work and our (the Gandhi family's) legacy. Vote for them (BJP) for development work they have done," he said.

"I am a soldier of the party and abiding by the party's decision. Raebareli and Amethi are considered constituencies of the Gandhi family. So, Rahul ji is contesting from Raebareli and I am fighting from here," the Congress leader added.

Kishori Lal Sharma, a close associate and loyalist of the Gandhi family, is originally from Punjab's Ludhiana. He has been working for the Congress Party in Amethi for years.

Amethi, the most-watched seat in the fifth phase, will go to the polls on May 20. The results will be announced on June 4.

The Amethi seat comprises five assembly segments, including Tiloi, Salon, Jagdishpur, Gauriganj, and Amethi. The constituency is a general seat.

In 2019, Irani got 468,514 voters with 49.7 per cent votes, while Rahul Gandhi got 413,394 voters with 43.9 per cent votes.

The voters of Amethi remained loyal to Congress as they consistently elected members of the Nehru-Gandhi family or candidates backed by the party.

In 1981, former PM Rajiv Gandhi won from Amethi and continued to represent the seat until his assassination in 1991. After his assassination, Congress' late Satish Sharma won the seat.

Sharma continued to represent the seat in the Lok Sabha till 1998 when the BJP's Sanjaya Sinh defeated him. In 1999, Sonia Gandhi was a candidate for the seat and won it.

Polling for 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh is being held across all seven phases. The counting of votes is scheduled for June 4. (ANI)