Yesterday, Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge held a high-level meeting at his residence. During the meeting, an announcement was made that Rahul Gandhi has chosen to relinquish the Wayanad seat and will instead retain the Rae Bareli seat. Rahul Gandhi had secured victories from both these seats in the Lok Sabha elections.
As per the rules, he had to vacate one seat within 14 days of the election results which came out on June 4th. He has finally decided to retain Rae Bareli over Wayanad. His sister, Priyanka Gandhi will be making her electoral debut from Wayanad in the Bypolls.
The Announcement..
Kharge stated, “Rahul Gandhi won from two Lok Saba seats but as per the law, he has to vacate one. Rahul Gandhi will retain Rae Bareli and we have decided that Priyanka ji will fight from Wayanad.”
While Rahul Gandhi stated, “I have an emotional relationship with Wayanad and Rae Bareli. I was an MP from Wayanad for last 5 years. I thank the people for their love and support. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will fight elections from Wayanad but I will also periodically visit. I have an old relationship with Rae Bareli, I am happy that I will get to represent them again..”
Priyanka Gandhi addressed the media by stating, “I’m very happy to be able to represent Wayanad. I won’t let the people of Wayanad feel Rahul ji’s absence. I will try my best to be a good representative.”
Political Reactions…
BJP National Spokesperson, Shehzad Poonawalla, slammed the Congress for its hypocrisy. He stated, “Congress is not a party but a family business, and this has been proved today. The mother has entered the Rajya Sabha, the son has entered the Lok Sabha from one seat, and Priyanka Gandhi has been made a member from another Lok Sabha seat. All three members of the family will be in the Parliament.”
He further added, “Even though Rahul Gandhi has emerged victorious in UP with the efforts of the Samajwadi Party. He knows getting by-elections done will not guarantee their victory in Rae Bareli for the second time… It is a betrayal to the people of Wayanad. Annie Raja kept saying that Rahul Gandhi would move out of the state after the elections, which he did. Another thing has become very clear that the political legacy of the family will be with the son and not the daughter…”
#WATCH | Varanasi: On Rahul Gandhi to keep Raebareli seat and Priyanka Gandhi to contest elections from Wayanad, BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla says, "Congress is not a party but a family business, and this has been proved today. The mother has entered the Rajya Sabha, the son has… pic.twitter.com/kBzYgoy88m
— ANI (@ANI) June 17, 2024
Some influencers on social media also took a jibe at Rahul Gandhi for betraying the people of Wayanad.
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi posted on X, “The voice of the people will resonate much louder with both @RahulGandhi and @priyankagandhi present inside the Parliament.” While some others hailed it as a strategic move of the Congress and linked it to women representation. Others on the other hand, called out Rahul Gandhi for chickening out. One such post being-
Some other people posted an old video of Priyanka Gandhi on social media, wherein she is stating that she is not interested in politics.
Power Dynamics…
Overall, it remains to be seen how the power dynamics will unfold. While one section seems to feel that by retaining Rae Bareli Rahul Gandhi is going to cement the Congress-SP alliance in Uttar Pradesh. Others on the other hand seem to look at it as “Dynastic Politics” with Rahul Gandhi carrying the legacy forward while leaving Priyanka Gandhi will have to work from scratch in Wayanad. Priyanka Gandhi, who had experience in Rae Bareli, will now have to go to Kerala and deal with the left, which was upset about Congress fighting them in Kerala. Time will tell how these power dynamics will play out…