Ending days of speculation, the Congress announced the candidatures of Rahul Gandhi and Kishori Lal Sharma in Rae Bareli and Amethi constituencies respectively in Uttar Pradesh.
The announcement came hours before the deadline comes to an end for filing nominations for the two seats that go to poll on May 20. May 3 is the last day for filing nominations for the two seats that figure in the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
The selection of Rae Bareli holds significance as it was the only seat won by the Congress from Uttar Pradesh in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, when Sonia Gandhi defeated her BJP rival Dinesh Pratap Singh by roughly 1,67,000 votes.
The announcement puts a lid on weeks of suspense that party General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra could make her electoral debut.
Congress is contesting 17 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, while its ally Samajwadi Party is contesting in the remaining 63 seats.
BJP has fielded Union Minister Smriti Irani and Uttar Pradesh MoS Dinesh Pratap Singh in Amethi and Rae Baraeli. Both contested from the same constituencies in 2019 too.
Sharma has been managing the two constituencies- Amethi and Rae Bareli for the Gandhi family for over 25-years now. He is a close confidant of the Gandhi family and has been involved in election management. A Gandhi family loyalist, he used to handle the constituency office for Rae Bareilly for Sonia Gandhi.
He also handled the constituency office for Amethi in the early years of Rahul Gandhi’s membership of the Lok Sabha from there.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in a message said, "Kishori Lal Sharma ji has been associated with our family for years. He has always been dedicated towards serving the people of Amethi and Rae Bareli. His passion for public service is an example in itself."
"Today it is a matter of joy that the Congress party has made him the party candidate from Amethi. Kishori Lal ji's loyalty and dedication towards duty will definitely bring him success in this election. Many best wishes," she said in a post in Hindi on X.
Deliberations had been going on in the party since Thursday on the names of the contenders for the two seats, which have been traditionally held by the members of the Gandhi-Nehru family.
Posters and banners of Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav were also brought late last evening to the Congress office in Gauriganj. BJP leader Smriti Irani has already filed her nomination papers from Amethi. The Uttar Pradesh leadership of the Congress had earlier called upon the Gandhi family to contest both the seats.
A Congress bastion
Rahul Gandhi who has represented Amethi thrice - 2004, 2009 and 2014 - lost the seat in 2019 to Union Minister and BJP leader Smriti Irani. Irani won by a margin of 55,000 votes. The only other Gandhi who has lost in Amethi was Sanjay Gandhi in 1977, seen as an aftermath of Indira Gandhi-imposed Emergency. The constituency had elected BJP’s Satish Sharma in 1998, instead of the namesake candidate from Congress.
After detailed deliberations, the party felt that Rae Bareli would be a safer bet.
The Congress has lost Rae Bareli only thrice in the past. In 1977 socialist leader Raj Narain famously defeated Indira Gandhi from here. BJP’s Ashok Singh won this twice in 1996 and 1998 elections. Since 2004, party matriarch Sonia Gandhi has been winning the seat. She opted out of the electoral race this time choosing instead to enter Parliament via Rajya Sabha.
Rahul Gandhi is also in fray from Wayanad, Kerala.
An influential section of the party was keen for Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to contest against Irani from Amethi, but she could not be convinced.