Congress leader Sam Pitroda on Friday, 26 April, said it was party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's own decision not to contest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat.
Speculation over Priyanka Gandhi's electoral debut from Modi's constituency ended on Thursday when the Congress fielded Ajay Rai, a political lightweight, from the Uttar Pradesh constituency.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley then took a dig at the Congress, claiming that Priyanka Gandhi had quietly chickened out of the contest.
"The party president had left the final decision on her, Pitroda said when asked about Rahul Gandhi not fielding his sister from the high-profile constituency.