Counting day: Rahul Gandhi takes massive lead in Wayanad, show early trends

Wayanad has been a Congress stronghold since it was carved out after the delimitation exercise in 2009

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, who is fighting for re-election from Wayanad constituency in Kerala, has built up a lead of over 45,000 votes within two hours of counting over his nearest rival, the CPI candidate Annie Raja, showed early counting trends at 9.45am. BJP state president K Surendran is in distant third place.

Poll officials at a counting centre in Shimla on Tuesday. (PTI)

Wayanad has been a Congress stronghold since it was carved out after the delimitation exercise in 2009. The constituency spreads across Wayanad, Kozhikode and Malappuram districts in north Kerala and has a sizeable Muslim and tribal population.

In 2019, Gandhi had secured 64% of the total 10.87 lakh votes, winning by over 4.3 lakh votes. This time, the CPI nominated its national council leader Annie Raja, wife of national secretary D Raja, in her debut election for the Lok Sabha. Though BJP fielded its state president, the constituency has been traditionally a weak spot for the saffron party.