Congress poll panel to meet today amid calls for Rahul Gandhi’s Amethi candidature
Amethi district Congress chief Pradeep Singhal has said that Rahul Gandhi would contest from his former constituency
Those lobbying for tickets, it is said, at the Congress headquarters on New Delhi’s 24, Akbar Road, never get it as the real influence works elsewhere. But this does not deter party workers from around the country from flocking to the headquarters in an election season.
Is Rahul Gandhi planning to contest from Amethi?
Aspirants have been queuing up with their resumes for tickets at the headquarters ahead of the national polls this summer even as the party is yet to take a call on them including whether Rahul Gandhi will contest again from Amethi. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was first off the blocks with its list of 195 candidates before two of them withdrew their candidature.
The Congress’s Central Election Committee is scheduled to hold its first meeting for the selection of candidates at 6pm on Thursday. There has been a growing clamour for Gandhi to contest from Amethi, which he represented from 2004 to 2019 but lost in the last election.
On February 19, Gandhi spoke about his long-standing relationship with Amethi when he arrived there as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. Gandhi spoke about social justice and unemployment while underlining a bond of love with Amethi.
{{/usCountry}}On February 19, Gandhi spoke about his long-standing relationship with Amethi when he arrived there as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. Gandhi spoke about social justice and unemployment while underlining a bond of love with Amethi.
{{/usCountry}}Amethi district Congress chief Pradeep Singhal has said Gandhi would contest from his former constituency even as party workers have started campaigning for his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in neighbouring Raebareli. People aware of the matter said party leaders are also discussing whether to field Rahul Gandhi from Raebareli and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra against Union minister Smriti Irani in Amethi.
{{/usCountry}}Amethi district Congress chief Pradeep Singhal has said Gandhi would contest from his former constituency even as party workers have started campaigning for his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in neighbouring Raebareli. People aware of the matter said party leaders are also discussing whether to field Rahul Gandhi from Raebareli and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra against Union minister Smriti Irani in Amethi.
{{/usCountry}}TMC veteran joins BJP
{{/usCountry}}TMC veteran joins BJP
{{/usCountry}}In West Bengal, Trinamool Congress (TMC)’s Tapas Ray defected to the BJP on Wednesday, dealing a blow to the state’s ruling party ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. The defection came even as TMC was already under fire for shielding its local functionary Sheikh Shahjahan, who was arrested this week after being on the run for weeks.
{{/usCountry}}In West Bengal, Trinamool Congress (TMC)’s Tapas Ray defected to the BJP on Wednesday, dealing a blow to the state’s ruling party ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. The defection came even as TMC was already under fire for shielding its local functionary Sheikh Shahjahan, who was arrested this week after being on the run for weeks.
{{/usCountry}}What is perhaps more disturbing for Bengal’s ruling party is that the BJP remains a viable option for disgruntled leaders even after the BJP badly lost the last assembly polls. Ray has never ventured out of West Bengal in his long political career. In that sense, his national importance might be limited.
Ray’s exit came a day after Calcutta high court judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay resigned to join the BJP.
Mayawati’s intriguing silence
Parties, big or small, have been involved in hectic poll-related activities but Mayawati’s Bahujan Sama Party (BSP) is hardly making any news. The last tweet from her account was on February 28 when she condoled the demise of an associate. The last important news from the BSP was on February 19 when Mayawati announced the BSP would contest the 2024 national polls on its own.
The BJP has, meanwhile, fielded Ritesh Pandey from Ambedkar Nagar after he defected from BSP. The BSP’s support base has eroded since Mayawati became the chief minister for the fourth time with a full majority in 2007. It could win just one seat in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly in 2022.
The BSP contested the 2019 national polls in alliance with the Samajwadi Party and improved its tally from zero to 10 seats. It ended the alliance blaming SP for the poll debacle. Ahead of the 2024 national polls, the question remains whether Mayawati can revive the party.
