Will Priyanka Gandhi Make Her Electoral debut in Wayanad? Says Sources (image-
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi’s electoral debut may become a reality with the media speculation claiming that she might be fielded from Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency in place of her brother, Rahul Gandhi.
In the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had contested in two seats, Raebareli- the party’s bastion and Wayanad constituency. He won both the seats with a huge margin of over 350,000 votes in each constituency.
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As per the law, a candidate can contest in two seats during the election but cannot retain both. Thus, after the declaration of the results, the candidate will have to resign from one of the seats within 14 days. If failed to do so, both the seats will be considered vacant.
Amidst the growing buzz regarding the candidature, the Kerala Pradesh Committee (KPCC) Chief K Sudhakaran on Wednesday dropped a hint that Rahul Gandhi might choose Raebareli.
However, Rahul Gandhi himself has come forward assuring that his decision would make both the people of Wayanad as well as Raebareli happy.
Earlier, ahead of the Lok Sabha election, there were speculations over Priyanka Gandhi’s electoral debut. However, the possibility was later completely ruled out when the Congress leader decided against contesting. The buzz has now regained momentum once again as the sources have told NDTV that Priyanka may become the Congress candidate for the by-poll from Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency.
Priyanka Gandhi’s electoral debut has always been a talking point during the election seasons. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, it was speculated that Ms Gandhi would contest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi constituency.
Later in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh election, Ms Gandhi herself had said that she would contest and Priyanka was serving as the Congress General Secretary for the state. She even hinted that she could be the chief ministerial candidate. However, hours later, the Congress leader made a U-turn over her remark.
Similar turn of events took place when Sonia Gandhi ahead of the Lok Sabha polls gave up the Raebareli seat and became a Rajya Sabha MP. With utmost certainty, the party workers thought that she would take over the Raebareli seat while her brother would fight to retain Amethi from former Union Minister Smrithi Irani.
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As per the source, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge had asked the Gandhi siblings to contest in the poll and said that if they didn’t fight from the bastions, it would send a wrong message to the Congress allies as well as the NDA.
However, Priyanka Gandhi opted to stay away from contesting but never compromised her participation in the campaigning. She had spent the bulk of her time campaigning in Raebareli and Amethi where the party has won with a huge margin.
She clarified her stance by stating that if she had won the Lok Sabha polls, it would led to three Gandhi’s being in Parliament which would fuel the NDA’s argument of the power dynamic politics of the party.
Despite all the political drama, the people of Wayanad are reluctant to hand over Rahul Gandhi to Raebareli. Congress workers were seen holding banners along with an emotional note, requesting him not to “leave them”. “Dear Big Brother Rahulji, Please don’t leave us, you are our best hope. But if you must, “Please ask sister (Priyankaji) to take care of us,” the banner read.
With all the speculations coming to an end, the Wayanad constituency will witness yet another interesting contest within six months.
