His dad signed Rajiv, Sonia's poll papers. He will now fight Rahul

LUCKNOW: A Congress loyalist for generations, Haji Mohammad Haroon Rashid, whose father was among the proposers when Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia filed their nominations from the Amethi constituency, shocked the party leadership on Monday by announcing that he would contest against Rahul Gandhi.Complete coverage: Lok Sabha electionsCiting lack of development and progress in Amethi as reasons for his disenchantment with Congress, Haroon told TOI, “There is a big difference in what Congress says and what it does. And no place can explain this better than Amethi. The abject poverty in Amethi is a naked truth that anyone can verify by taking a trip to the villages. I have decided to contest elections against him (Rahul) to put things in order.” Haroon’s father Mohammad Sultan is an old Congressman. “Born in 1910, my father joined Congress very young. We supported Congress for more than 70 years, but now realise that the party didn’t want Amethi’s development,” Haroon added. “Seventy years is a long time. If we do not wake up now, we will never be able to change our fate.” Asked about which party he would approach for a ticket, Haroon, a farmer from Fursatganj, said: “I am evaluating my options.”There were, however, reports that Haroon was backed by a group of Samajwadi Party leaders.