AMETHI: Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Wedesday opened the door for a Lok Sabha debut, saying if her party wants she would not hesitate to jump into the poll fray.“If my party wants that I must contest, I certainly would,” Priyanka told reporters in Amethi. “My first preference is that I work for the party as there is a lot to do for in the organization. I want to further the prospects of the party,” she added.She began her three-day visit to Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh , beginning with Amethi and Rae Bareli. Her trip will also include a trip to several temples in Ayodhya.Congress has not, so far, included the Ram Temple site in her itinerary. The shrines on her list include the Hanumangarhi Temple and Ram Janki Mandir. Replying to a query over UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s accusations that she remembered temples only during elections, Priyanka said: “How does he know where I go and when? How does he know I do not go during non-election time?”Union minister Smriti Irani — who will be contesting against Priyanka’s brother and Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Amethi — has taken a swipe at her, saying she is moving like a “Ram bhakt” even as Congress had presented documents in the court questioning existence of Lord Ram.Since last one month, local Congress leaders in Varanasi have been demanding that Priyanka contests against Prime Minister Narendra Modi Posters featuring her, Rahul Gandhi and local Congress leader Ajay Rai — who had contested against Narenadra Modi in 2014 — have surfaced as well in Varanasi .However, Priyanka, in her last visit to Varanasi, remarked “My brother Rahul is contesting for PM directly in 2019.”Priyanka is expected to stay at the family-owned resthouse in Bhuyemau in Rae Bareli for the next two days before departing for Ayodhya.

Stay updated with all the Lucknow Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.