New Delhi:
The Congress announced another list of candidates this evening, leaving just three seats undecided in Uttar Pradesh – including the Gandhian stronghold of Raebareli, and Amethi, which turned against the Congress and voted en masse for the BJP’s Smriti Irani in 2019.
Though Rahul Gandhi filed his candidature from Wayanad yesterday, there is no word on the fate of Amethi, which he won thrice before losing to Smriti Irani.
Raebareli had his sitting MP, Sonia Gandhi, switch to the Upper House Rajya Sabha of Parliament.
There is a desire in the Congress that Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will take over her mother’s seat, while Rahul Gandhi will make another attempt to win back Amethi.
The BJP camp is looking at the situation cheerfully, noting that Mr Gandhi is not too keen on Amethi for fear of another defeat.
They also point out that the Gandhis are not frequent visitors in Raebareli and Amethi. Mr Gandhi bypassed his former constituency during his recent Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, after a very long time. The Gandhis do not even have a house in the constituency.
There are concerns that if the Gandhi siblings decide to contest from these two seats, their long absence would figure prominently in the campaign of the BJP, which is keen to add the Gandhian bastions to its list.
The party, which is aiming for 370 seats this time, expects the majority to come from the 80-seat Uttar Pradesh.
Meanwhile, Smriti Irani will be in Wayanad on Thursday to support the BJP candidate, party’s state unit chief K Surendran.
“Under the dynamic leadership of Smt. Smriti Irani Ji, Amethi has undergone significant development, leaving the era of ineffective governance behind. As Wayanad faces similar challenges, it is time for a concerted effort towards transformative change,” Mr Surendran posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Congress sources said the party’s election committee will meet on April 5 where the final decision on Amethi and Raebareli will be taken.