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Lok Sabha elections 2019: Will Priyanka Gandhi fight the Lok Sabha elections?
Congress president Rahul Gandhi elevated Priyanka Gandhi as the party general secretary in charge of eastern UP ahead of the polls, her first formal responsibility in the organisation. Her entry not only boosted the morale of thousands of party workers, but also increased women’s participation in the party’s internal network, Shakti.
Whether or not Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra contests the Lok Sabha election is a function of time, given her packed schedule, which includes a national campaign and also duties in the Gandhi family bastions of Amethi and Rae Bareli, senior leaders aware of the situation said, asking not to be identified.
The Congress has decided to field its sitting MLA, Ajay Rai, for Varanasi, ending speculation about Priyanka Gandhi’s candidacy for the Lok Sabha seat to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On Thursday, Modi held a road show attended by tens of thousands of people in the constituency. He is expected to file his nomination papers on Friday.
According to one of the people cited in the first instance, a senior party functionary, Priyanka Gandhi has said that she must spend more time in Amethi and Rae Bareli, the seats of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, respectively. The former has been travelling around the country, campaigning for the party as its president. The latter isn’t expected to campaign extensively. In Amethi, Rahul Gandhi faces Union minister Smriti Irani, who is seen as a strong candidate.
“The only factor, the way we see it, is time management. If she contests for the Lok Sabha, she has to give considerable time for her seat. This would leave her with limited time for campaign in other parts of the state as well as the country. We think that a final decision will be taken in the next few days,” added the first person cited above.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi elevated Priyanka Gandhi as the party general secretary in charge of eastern UP ahead of the polls, her first formal responsibility in the organisation. Her entry not only boosted the morale of thousands of party workers, but also increased women’s participation in the party’s internal network, Shakti. After her appointment, enrolment of women went up to 40% from the earlier 22%.
In the past few weeks, the party has been flooded with appeals from workers and local leaders to field Priyanka Gandhi in the election. Priyanka Gandhi herself has maintained that this depends on her party. “If my party asks me to contest the polls, I will definitely do so. But my personal wish is to work for the party’s organisation as a lot of work needs to be done,” she told reporters earlier this month in Amethi.
Since then, there has been frenzied speculation on her candidacy. At a meeting, when she was asked whether she would contest from Lucknow, she retorted, “Why not, Varanasi?”. There were also reports that she could consider contesting the Allahabad seat.
According to the leaders cited in the first instance, Priyanka Gandhi is expected to give a fresh push to the party’s key plank, the minimum guaranteed income scheme, NYAY, which promises Rs 72,000 a year to the country’s poorest households. In a voice message, Priyanka Gandhi will say that the monthly amount will be transferred to the bank accounts of the women in a household.
Her recorded message, heard by HT, also speaks about the way the current “suit boot ki sarkar” has given money to industrialists and not the poor.
She reiterates the party’s stand that no new taxes will be imposed to fund the scheme, and that resources for it will come from the money the Congress claims the Modi government wastes on the PM’s industrialist friends.
