Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday said the decision not to contest from Varanasi Lok Sabha seat against Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a collective party decision taken after ascertaining the opinion of all top party leaders.
Speaking to media here, the Congress leader, who is also the in-charge for the eastern Uttar Pradesh said, "Before deciding not to conest from Varanasi I took advice of all senior leaders of our party and colleagues in Uttar Pradesh.
"They felt that I have a responsibility here of looking after 41 seats and then I felt that if I contested from the Varanasi seat, then they (candidates) would be disappointed if I focused on only one place," she said.
She also said that she has been given the task of strengthening the party in the eastern Pradesh.
The Congress last week announced the candidature of Ajay Rai against Modi from Varanasi.
Earlier, the Congress leader had sent ripples across the political spectrum after her swift riposte "Why not Varanasi" (the Lok Sabha seat of Prime Minister Narendra Modi) to the party workers' request to contest elections from her mother Sonia Gandhi's parliamentary constituency Rae Bareli.
--IANS
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