Amethi: On his first visit after losing the Lok Sabha seat, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday attributed his defeat to local leaders staying away from the people and assured he would not abandon the constituency, party functionaries said.

"I will not leave Amethi. It is my home and family," former state Youth Congress chief Nadeem Ashraf Jayasi quoted Gandhi as saying at a meeting. "The development of Amethi will not be hampered. I am the MP from Wayanad but my ties with Amethi are three decades old. I will fight for Amethi in Delhi," Gandhi told party workers. Before the 2019 defeat, Gandhi represented Amethi since the 2004 general polls.