A never-before prospect awaits India’s Parliament should Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, named for the Wayanad seat by the Congress as replacement for brother Rahul, win the contest: two siblings and their mother (Sonia Gandhi in the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan) will form an unprecedented trio as members.
On Monday, Priyanka agreed to take the electoral plunge from Wayanad after the Congress top brass decided it was in the best interest of the party that Rahul vacate the Kerala seat and retain Rae Bareli, given the political significance of Uttar Pradesh which sends 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha while Kerala just 20.
Though not surprising, the official announcement that Priyanka would contest from Wayanad has been welcomed even by Rahul’s nearest rival. Annie Raja, who managed to shrink the Congress MP’s margin from over four lakh in 2019 by nearly 70,000 votes this time, welcomed the decision to retain Rae Bareli.
“Taking the national political situation into consideration and as a senior Congress leader, Rahul Gandhi’s decision to retain Rae Bareli is the most appropriate since it’s important to be in the Hindi heartland,” Raja told a channel.
The decision was taken on Monday evening at a meeting held at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence, where the party’s core group comprising Sonia Gandhi, organisation general secretary K.C. Venugopal and Rahul and Priyanka were present.
Announcing the decision, Kharge said the deadline for making the choice expired on Tuesday, and thus the party had decided that Rahul should vacate Wayanad and retain Rae Bareli, with which the Nehru-Gandhi family has been associated for generations.
"The Congress believes it would be beneficial for the party if Rahul retains Rae Bareli. It has been decided that Priyanka will contest from Wayanad. She has agreed," Kharge said.
Section 91 of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, mandates that a candidate who has won from more than one seat should vacate all but one within 14 days of his/ her date of election.
Briefly speaking to the media, Rahul said: "The people of Wayanad stood with me, the people of Wayanad gave me love and affection; every single person regardless of party.... They gave me the energy to fight in a very difficult time. I will never forget that.
"I want everyone in Wayanad to know that Priyanka is going to fight in Wayanad but I am going to be a frequent visitor to Wayanad and I am going to be available to the people of Wayanad and the commitments that I have made, we will stand by them.... The people of Wayanad now have two members of Parliament."
Stating that she "won't let them feel Rahul's absence", Priyanka said she was not nervous about her electoral debut.
Annie Raja welcomed the Congress's decision to field Priyanka. "Fielding Priyanka is a welcome decision since women’s representation has reduced in the Lok Sabha," she said.
Rahul had an easy win from Wayanad this time, too, by a margin of 364,422 votes. Though less than the 2019 margin of 431,770 votes, his performance was another sign of how the people of Wayanad had embraced him.
The decision was in tandem with Rahul’s assurance to the people of Wayanad during his "thanksgiving" visit on June 12 when he said: "What I will commit to you is that both Wayanad and Rae Bareli will be happy with my decision."
State Congress president K. Sudhakaran was more candid when he urged people to understand why Rahul must vacate Wayanad. "Rahul Gandhi, who has to lead India, cannot remain in Wayanad. Everyone please understand that," Sudhakaran had said although the AICC had not taken any decision then.
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala attributed Rahul’s love for the people of Wayanad to the decision to field his sister. “That’s why he decided to field Priyanka, one of the tallest leaders in the country today. She will win by a massive margin,” he told a TV channel.
He had no doubts about the people’s support for Priyanka. “People will wholeheartedly welcome Priyanka to Wayanad. But we need to realise the importance of Rahul retaining Rae Bareli since his fight in the Hindi heartland was instrumental in spoiling any chance of Narendra Modi getting a clear majority,” he said.
Congress ally Indian Union Muslim League, too, extended its support to the decision. “We have always chaired the election committee in Wayanad. There won’t be any change in our approach,” IUML national general secretary P.K. Kunhalikutty told reporters on Monday.
He underlined the primordial responsibility of the IUML, which is part of the INDIA bloc, to protect secularism in the country. “Protecting secularism in the country is our main responsibility. We will be ready to take any steps to ensure that,” he added.