Smriti Irani, the giant killer who defeated Rahul Gandhi in Amethi, the minister who initiated the National Education Policy consultations, and one of the BJP’s most effective star campaigners, joins Q&A on The New Indian Express. From the ideal bahu who held the Virani family together on screen to the leader now welcoming rebel SP MLAs into the BJP, she addresses the irony of her journey, her organisational mandate, the Amethi defections, and whether she is the party’s answer to Rahul Gandhi. She also responds to questions on why the BJP repeatedly focuses on him, whether she will contest against him in Rae Bareli or stick to Amethi, and how she sees the larger political battle ahead of 2027.