Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to contest bypolls from Wayanad: A look at her 2-decade political journey

Priyanka is known for her role in playing the troubleshooter in 2017 when uneasiness prevailed between the Samajwadi Party and the Congress as the latter demanded 110 seats while Akhilesh Yadav’s party offered 100. The alliance finally took shape only after senior Congress leaders such as Sonia Gandhi, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Priyanka met Akhilesh and senior SP leader Azam Khan. Following the meeting, it was announced that the SP would contest 298 seats while the Congress fielded candidates in 105 constituencies. Days after the announcement, the SP released a list of 208 candidates while fielding nominees in 10 seats that were promised to the Congress.

By January 2019, she was entrusted as the party’s general secretary in eastern Uttar Pradesh, home to Congress bastions Amethi and Rae Bareli. And by September 2020, after Jyotiraditya Scindia’s exit from the party, she was appointed general secretary in-charge of the entire Uttar Pradesh. She was often touted as a possible challenger to Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Varanasi while others pegged her as Sonia Gandhi’s possible successor in Rae Bareli.

The year of her entry, however, saw Congress’ fortunes plummeting to just one seat in the state.

Often known to evoke woman power in her speeches, Priyanka once said at a public meeting, “I am your sister, your daughter. I have come to understand your issues and find solutions.” Ahead of the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, she also launched her brainchild ‘Ladki Hoon Lad Sakti Hoon (I am a girl and I can fight)’. While accusing the rival parties of ignoring women, the Congress announced it will give 40 per cent of tickets to women candidates. The slogan, however, did not convert into electoral wins, fetching just two of the total 403 Assembly seats.

The next few years saw political ups and downs with a win in Himachal Pradesh in December 2022, but subsequent losses in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. In a December 2023 rejig, she remained a general secretary but was divested of the charge of Uttar Pradesh.

As Lok Sabha election campaigning gained momentum, an unrelenting Priyanka continued the ground work in Uttar Pradesh and the rest of India, issuing sharp retorts to the ruling National Democratic Alliance. “My mother’s mangalsutra was sacrificed for this country,” she had said, referring to the assassination of her father and former PM Rajiv Gandhi, in response Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remark that the Congress’ agenda is to redistribute the country’s wealth among Muslims.

In other rallies, she criticised Modi and the BJP-led Centre and Uttar Pradesh government over issues pertaining to economy and development.

During 108 public meetings and roadshows in 16 states and one union territory, she urged people to vote for bread-and-butter issues instead of emotional ones like religion and caste.

Her strength to connect with the masses, charisma, eloquence, focus on grassroot politics, efforts to build a strong organisational structure in Uttar Pradesh and elaborate roadshows and rallies seemed to bear fruit as the Congress improved its tally to six seats in the 2024 general elections.

In the recently-concluded polls, Rahul won from both Rae Bareli and Wayanad with whopping margins of over 6.5 lakh and 3.6 lakh votes respectively. After Kharge announced Priyanka’s candidacy from Wayanad, she said, “I’m not nervous at all, I am very happy to be able to represent Wayanad. I won’t let them feel his (Rahul’s) absence… I have a good relation with Rae Bareli as I have worked there for 20 years and that relation will never break.”

All eyes will now be on Priyanka’s fate when bypolls are conducted in Wayanad. Her victory would mean the presence of all three Gandhi family members in the Parliament, with Rahul representing Rae Bareli in Lok Sabha and Sonia Gandhi in the Rajya Sabha.