Mere a day after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi filed his second nomination for the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 from Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareli, mixed reactions of people were reported from across his ruling constituency Wayanad. While some did not find anything wrong with their incumbent MP filing his second nomination from Congress' bastion Rae Bareli, others feared that he would vacate the Wayanad seat if he wins the poll from Rae Bareli.
It is pertinent to note that, likewise in the 2019 general elections, the former Congress President has filed his nomination from two constituencies - Wayanad and Rae Bareli. While elections were held in the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat on April 26, Rae Bareli will go for polls in the fifth phase, i.e., on May 20. Furthermore, this time in Wayanad, he was pitted against CPI leader Annie Raja and state BJP president K. Surendran.
Amid yesterday's chaos over Rahul Gandhi filing his nomination from Rae Bareli, at a wayside shop in Wayanad, one person said there was nothing wrong with Mr. Gandhi's decision to contest from two seats. "He is leading the INDIA bloc, and hence there is nothing wrong with it."
However, the news did not sit well with others. One person said, "If he wins from both the seats, it's most likely that he will vacate the Wayanad seat." "If he does that, then it might not look good for us. Anyway, let us wait," he added.
Moreover, veteran Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader PK Kunhalikutty too backed Gandhi's second nomination from Rae Bareli. He said there was nothing wrong at all in his decision to contest from Rae Bareli as well.
"The fact of the matter is we (IUML) requested the Congress party's national leadership that Rahul should contest from one more seat other than Wayanad. Did not PM Modi contest from two seats in the past? We feel that this decision will be a boost for the INDIA bloc," said Kunhalikutty.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Smriti Irani on Friday took a sharp dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who filed his nomination from Rae Bareli as well. Speaking about Gandhi's transition from Amethi to Wayanad to now filing nominations from Rae Bareli, Irani said, "The one who was not accepted by Amethi and fled to Wayanad will never fully belong to Rae Bareli."
"Also, the question is: he, in Wayanad, said it is his family. Now what will he say in Rae Bareli today?" she asked.
In a blistering attack, the Union Minister further added that the Gandhis' absence from the electoral fray in Amethi indicates that Congress has accepted their defeat even before the elections.
Speaking to reporters, she said, "The Gandhi family not being present in the election fray in Amethi indicates that the Congress party has accepted its defeat in Amethi even before the polling on the seat."
"Had they felt there was any chance of victory on the seat, they would have contested from here and not fielded their proxy," the incumbent MP from Amethi and BJP leader added. It is pertinent to note that the Congress has fielded party leader and a close aid of the Gandhi family, Kishori Lal Sharma as a candidate from Amethi.
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