Wayanad byelection: Priyanka to file papers on Wednesday

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra arrives in Wayanad to file nomination papers, continuing family legacy in electoral politics.

Congress leader and United Democratic Front candidate for the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, along with her mother and Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, arrived at Sulthan Bathery in Wayanad around 9 p.m. on Tuesday.

Ms. Vadra will submit her nomination papers on Wednesday (October 23) for the seat vacated by her brother Rahul Gandhi, who had also won from the Rae Bareilly Lok Sabha constituency in Uttar Pradesh.

“The people of Wayanad hold a special place in my heart, and I can’t imagine a better representative for them than my sister, @priyankagandhi. I’m confident she will be a passionate champion of Wayanad’s needs and a powerful voice in Parliament,” Mr. Gandhi said in a post on X on Tuesday.

Speaking to mediapersons after inaugurating Ms. Vadra’s election committee office at Sulthan Bathery, Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal said all arrangements were in place for Ms. Vadra’s maiden debut in the Wayanad constituency. Mr. Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge are expected to arrive on Wednesday morning.

Though Ms. Vadra is making her electoral fray two decades after her brother first contested and won the Amethi Lok Sabha seat, she is not a complete stranger to electoral politics.

Since 1999, Ms. Vadra has had rich experience of managing Sonia Gandhi’s constituencies of Amethi in 1999 and Rae Bareli since 2004. Her formal entry into politics was months before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Inducted directly into the Congress Working Committee, she was made in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. However, the party could not translate her charisma into seats and even Mr. Gandhi lost his Amethi seat to BJP’s Smriti Irani.

Ms. Vadra will file her nomination papers with Wayanad District Collector D.R. Meghashree at 12.30 p.m. on Wednesday, accompanied by Ms. Gandhi, Mr. Gandhi, Mr. Kharge, senior national and State leaders, and three Chief Ministers.