Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi to visit Amethi today

LUCKNOW: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will visit Amethi parliamentary constituency on Wednesday. This will be the duo's first visit after Rahul fought his toughest electoral battle in Amethi, winning with a 1.07 lakh vote margin over BJP's Smriti Irani.

Rahul and Priyanka are expected to land at Fursatganj around 1pm on Wednesday, following which they will hold a meeting with party workers at the District Congress Committee office in Gauriganj. They are also likely to visit the Pure Nidhan Kuwar village in Gauriganj where as many as 65 houses were gutted in a fire that broke out at the village in the Jamo police station area on Monday evening. Though police rushed in fire tenders and brought the blaze under control, several houses had already been gutted. Congress workers, on Tuesday, began relief work, distributing food and other relief material to the families. Local Congressmen said the relief operation was at Rahul's behest.

On Monday, soon after the accident, BJP workers had rushed relief material to the village. The incident also led to a twitter war over the absence of MP Rahul Gandhi when his constituency needed him. Smriti Irani tweeted on Tuesday that she had already been in conversation with the district magistrate, seeking compensation for the 66 families affected by the fire. She also said her NGO would send additional relief material to victims.

Rahul and Priyanka's Wednesday's visit, therefore, is being regarded by many as result of a wakeup call the Congress vice president received on the Gandhi home turf. Having received a large number of complaints already, over the neglect of the VIP constituency at the hands of the Gandhi family, they are not likely to take more chances. Amethi's constituents have impressed Rahul that his next election from Amethi could be tougher, if Congress does not deliver.