KALPETTA: AICC General Secretary and UDF candidate for the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency by-election Priyanka Gandhi is expected to submit her nomination papers on October 23.
She will arrive in Kozhikode on October 22 and begin campaigning in the seven assembly constituencies the following day. MP Rahul Gandhi is also expected to join her on the election trail. The UDF is currently entering the second phase of campaigning in the constituency and has initiated panchayat-level conventions. The roadshows will kick off with Priyanka’s arrival.
Meanwhile, Sathyan Mokeri of the CPI will represent the LDF in the bypoll. The NDA has yet to announce its candidate for the constituency.
The bypoll in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency was necessitated after Rahul Gandhi won from both Wayanad and Rae Bareli in the general elections conducted in April and chose to represent the latter.
CPI’s Annie Raja contested as the LDF candidate against Rahul last time, while BJP state president K. Surendran was the NDA candidate.
Wayanad is once again receiving national attention with the announcement of Priyanka Gandhi’s debut in parliamentary politics. In 2019, Rahul Gandhi won by a massive margin of 431,770 votes in the Wayanad constituency; however, this margin dipped to 364,000 in April.
UDF leadership claims they will increase Priyanka’s majority to 500,000 from the 350,000 received by Rahul Gandhi.