
The time has come that Rahul Gandhi has to give up the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat today in favour of the family bastion of Raebareli, which he had also won with a big margin. This will pave the way for the Congress leader’s sister, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, to contest from the constituency in Kerala, buzz about which has been building up for a few days. Raerareli is one of the 80 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is considered to be the foundation of the Indian National Congress. From 1967 to 1977, the seat was held by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and from 2004 until her appointment to the Rajya Sabha in 2024, by Sonia Gandhi.
It was Raerareli from where Jawahar Lal Nehru started his political journey by making a public speech in the year 1921. It was the first Lok Sabha election held in independent India in 1952; this seat was represented by Feroze Gandhi and then again in 1957 until he died in 1960. The baton was then passed to Indira Gandhi, who represented Rae Bareli from 1967–77. (She lost the seat in the 1977 elections in the wake of the emergency.) Again, Indira Gandhi won the elections in the 1980 general election by defeating Rajmata of Gwalior Vijaya Raje Scindia (who got only 13.1% of the vote share). Although Indira Gandhi later resigned from the Rae Bareli seat,. After that, from 1980–1989, this seat was represented by Arun Nehru and from 1989–1996, this seat was represented by Sheila Kaul. (Both members of the Nehru-Gandhi family.)
Sonia Gandhi has been representing this constituency from 2004 till now. A total of 17 Lok Sabha elections have taken place in Raerareli and all of these Indian National Congress candidates have won 14 times. To keep up this Congress party legacy, Rahul Gandhi is going to give up the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat in favour of the family bastion of Raebareli, which he had also won with a huge margin. In future, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra can contest from the constituency in Kerala, buzz about which has been building up for a few days.
The Congress is holding a high-level meeting and the decision on the Wayanad constituency is likely to be taken there because today is the last day for it to be conveyed to the Lok Sabha secretariat. The call on the pick for the Leader of the Opposition may also be made during the meeting but the selection of the Wayanad candidate can wait as the by-poll will be held within six months of Rahul Gandhi giving up the seat. The Raebareli seat was held by Sonia Gandhi from 2004 until she moved to the Rajya Sabha earlier this year. Cementing its status as a Gandhi family bastion is the fact that it was also represented by Rahul Gandhi’s grandmother, former PM Indira Gandhi, and her husband, Feroze Gandhi.
While Rahul Gandhi was not inclined to give up Wayanad, what also worked in favour of Raebareli was the fact that it is in Uttar Pradesh, home to the largest number of Lok Sabha seats in the country, the sources said. The astounding performance of the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance in the state, where it won 43 of 80 constituencies, reducing the BJP from 62 to 33, also played a role in the decision-making.
Amethi, another crucial constituency for Congress, under Sanjay Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, had a good number of industries (mostly in Industrial Area Jagdishpur, the brainchild of Sanjay Gandhi). Both brothers really developed this place. After Rajiv Gandhi, development stopped. Malvika Steels is defunct and there are not many new projects. Promises and blame games only. Amethi Rural is plagued with underdevelopment. Rural development is about the rejuvenation of agriculture. Unfortunately, it’s in a pretty bad state.
The crime rate is low; local muscle men have their influence, though. In 2019, Smriti Irani won elections from Amethi but most of the time was spent attacking the Gandhi family, especially Rahul. Hardly any development, people were angry with her unreasonable attacks. Finally, her seat succumbed to anti-incumbency. Let’s see how Gandhi’s once again brings some new breeze to their family turf.