NEW DELHI, (IANS): Senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi is all set to file her
nomination papers for Wayanad bye-elections on October 23, party sources said
on Monday.
The Congress General Secretary will be accompanied by top
Congress brass including her mother Sonia Gandhi and brother Rahul Gandhi
during nomination filing, setting the stage for her electoral debut.
She is expected to file her nomination on Wednesday
before the Returning Officer in Kalpetta.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is the UDF candidate for the
Wayanad Parliamentary bye-election.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress
Parliamentary Party (CPP) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Leader of Opposition
(LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi will accompany Priyanka, as she files her
nomination papers on Wednesday.
Some Congress chief ministers along with some prominent
central and state leaders are also likely to be present in a show of support.
According to party leaders, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi
will lead a mega roadshow, starting from Kalpetta New Bus Stand at 11 A.M.
before filing nomination papers.
Priyanka will head to the office of District Collector at
around 12 noon to file nomination papers. Meanwhile, the Kerala Congress unit
is already enthused and excited over another Gandhi scion coming to Wayanad to
fill in the space vacated by Rahul Gandhi.
Party workers have already started putting up billboards
and painting her name on the walls in the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, spread over
three districts – Wayanad, Kozhikode and Malappuram.
Wayanad bypolls will mark her first electoral debut.
In her past five years in politics after she made her
debut in 2019, Priyanka Gandhi has seen many ups and downs.
From facing the Congress’ drubbing in UP Assembly
elections to the party’s stupendous performance in Lok Sabha elections in 2024
and also Himachal and Karnataka Assembly elections, she has brightened the
party's prospects over the years.
The bypolls were necessitated in Kerala’s Wayanad after
her brother Rahul Gandhi vacated the seat and opted for Rae Bareli constituency
in Uttar Pradesh.
The bypoll to the Wayanad parliamentary seat will be held
on November 13, along with the first phase of polling for the Jharkhand
Assembly. The results will be announced on November 23.