Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Congress has planned the ‘biggest win’ for the party’s general secretary, Priyanka Gandhi, in the ensuing Wayanad bypolls in Kerala; the party is targeting a 5 lakh votes win for its leader’s maiden election.
“We will make sure that Priyanka must win with a margin of five lakhs, which will be the biggest win and better than Rahul Gandhi’s 2019 winning margin of 4.60 lakhs,” veteran Congress leader and Kasargod MP Rajmohan Unnithan told IANS.
Unnithan, known for his firebrand speeches, said that the five lakh margin is easily achievable given the current political scenario in Kerala.
“The Pinarayi Vijayan government is struggling because of its misdeeds while the BJP has lost its face after the Wayanad landslides even after PM Modi visited the area,” said the veteran Congressman.
Rahul Gandhi vacated the Wayanad seat after winning the Raebareli Lok Sabah in the 2024 general elections.
Sources said that Priyanka Gandhi, along with her brother and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, are likely to visit Kerala on October 23. Both the Congress leaders (Rahul and Priyanka) are scheduled to make a whirlwind trip to the Wayanad constituency.
According to sources, Priyanka will file her nomination paper on October 23.
Kasargod MP Rajmohan Unnithan said a full-fledged election meeting will chart the entire road map for Priyanka Gandhi’s campaign.
After the Election Commission of India announced the by-polls date for Wayanad on Wednesday, people came out in large numbers to celebrate in the constituency, and billboards and paintings of Priyanka Gandhi were put up in the area.
Wayanad constituency is spread across seven Assembly constituencies in three districts – Wayanad, Malappuram, and Kozhikode.
Of the seven, four are held by the Congress-led UDF, two by the CPI-M, and one was won by the Left-backed independent legislator P.V. Anvar, who has now split up with the ruling Left and floated his own party.
In the 2019 general elections, Rahul Gandhi won the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat with a margin of 4.6 lakh votes. However, in the 2024 general election, Rahul Gandhi only won by 3.64 lakh votes.
Meanwhile, the CPI has decided to field its veteran leader, Sathyan Mokeri, from Wayanad, while the BJP has yet to announce its candidate.
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