Rajya Sabha route for Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra, speculations rife

Tribune Web Desk

Vibha Sharma

Chandigarh, February 6

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s direct jibe on Monday revived the speculations over a possible Rajya Sabha route for former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her daughter, party general secretary Priyanka Vadra.

The buzz is also on whether Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who unsuccessfully contested from Amethi in 2019, will return to Uttar Pradesh in 2024 or continue with Wayanad, which he won.

Rahul Gandhi lost Amethi, a Congress bastion, to BJP’s Smriti Irani in the last General Election.

Amethi is a constituency represented by who’s who of the Gandhi family like Rahul’s late uncle Sanjay Gandhi, his father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and mother Sonia Gandhi.

Rahul himself represented it three times since 2004. Though he won Wayanad (Kerala) with a massive margin, he was stunned in the family bastion.

Rajya Sabha or Lok Sabha

While Rahul Gandhi is expected to remain on the Lok Sabha route, the same cannot be predicted about his mother Sonia Gandhi, say sources.

With the deadline for filing nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha elections approaching, speculations are rife about her opting for the Upper House route to continue in Parliament. Notably, the former Congress chief was the lone party survivor in Rae Bareli, UP, in 2019.

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has already offered her a Lok Sabha seat in his state. Congress leaders are of the opinion that since former PM Indira Gandhi also contested from the Medak, it will make an ideal constituency for Sonia Gandhi.

Congress leaders are aware of the situation in Uttar Pradesh, especially after the 'pran pratishtha' ceremony at Ayodhya, say observers. Meanwhile, it remains to be seen if she continues with Raebareli, the constituency she currently represents, shifts to a “safer seat”, or opts for the Rajya Sabha route.

Rajya Sabha route for Priyanka as well?

Sources say Congress units in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, and Telangana have all offered seats to Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra. Himachal Pradesh Congress’ chief Pratibha Singh was quoted as saying that the seat in the state should go to either Sonia or Priyanka.

The Rajya Sabha elections to 56 seats from 15 states will be held on February 27.

States where the elections for the Rajya Sabha are scheduled include Uttar Pradesh (10), Maharashtra (6), Bihar (6), West Bengal (5), Madhya Pradesh (5), Gujarat (4), Karnataka (4), Andhra Pradesh (3), Telangana (3), Rajasthan (3), Odisha (3), Uttarakhand (1), Chhattisgarh (1), Haryana (1), and Himachal Pradesh (1).

What PM said

Speaking in the Lok Sabha on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a jibe at the opposition, primarily the Congress party and mainly the Gandhi family, saying that “I see that many of you (Opposition) have even lost the courage to contest elections. Some seats were changed last time also…I have heard that many are looking to change their seats this time as well. I have also heard that many people now want to go to Rajya Sabha instead of Lok Sabha. They are looking for their paths by assessing the situation”.

I&B Minister Anurag Thakur also said that no one from the Gandhi family of the Congress was “fit to contest Lok Sabha elections from Uttar Pradesh this year.

“No one from the Gandhi family is fit to contest from UP. Those who won never went (there) to show their faces. Those who lost didn’t leave any opportunity to insult North Indians. Those who criticised Lord Rama are now afraid of even setting their foot on the land of Ram Lalla,” Thakur said.

Those who fielded lawyers to defend the Babri Masjid will have no feet to stand on in UP, he said. “Their (read Congress) allies (read SP) opened fire on Lord Rama worshippers. Their steps are now faltering,” the minister added.

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#Congress #Narendra Modi #Pratibha Singh #Rajya Sabha #Sonia Gandhi