Will they or won’t they? Rahul, Priyanka keep Congress guessing on Amethi, Raebareli

Congress leaders say there is still a lot of time to decide. Amethi and Raebareli go to polls on May 20 in the fifth phase and the last date for filing nominations is May 3. But, interestingly, the party has announced candidates in seats such as Maharajganj, Deoria, Bansgaon, and Varanasi that vote in the last phase on June 1. Apart from Amethi and Raebareli, the Congress has also yet to announce candidates for Prayagraj and Mathura.

While in the case of others, it is the Congress’s Central Election Committee that takes a call on candidates — generally a decision gets delayed when there is more than one strong claimant — senior Congress leaders say without any qualms that the Gandhi siblings will decide if they will enter the poll fray from UP. Most of them are left with little option but to read signals and hazard intelligent guesses on the possible moves of the siblings.

“Priyanka’s presence at the INDIA bloc rally on Sunday is a signal that she may contest. She is active. Otherwise, she would not have been there at the rally since Sonia, Mallikarjun Kharge (Congress president), and Rahul were all attending,” said a senior leader who is a key member of the party’s decision-making apparatus. But another party functionary did not seem so sure. “They may not contest. That is the signal I am picking up from those close to him.”

There are different strands of opinion in the party on the reason behind this delay and whether it is a deliberate move. A section believes there is no uncertainty or confusion and that the Gandhi siblings will contest from UP, the Hindi heartland state that is the most important in the journey to national power, and the decision will be announced at “the appropriate time”.

“Rahul not contesting from Amethi will send a terrible political signal. I see no reason why he won’t contest. The Gandhis not contesting from Amethi and Raebareli will give the BJP a potent campaign talking point — that they have run away as they are not sure of their victories in Uttar Pradesh. It will be terrible in terms of optics in the northern states,” said a leader.

Another Congress insider said the siblings were weighing their options. “Both of them have to travel across the country extensively for campaigning. They will not want to get tied down in their constituencies. If I remember correctly, neither of them has been to Amethi and Raebareli in the last two years. So, they are looking into all aspects.”

While the Gandhis keep the cards close to their chests, party leaders believe there will be two narratives at play irrespective of whether they contest or not. “If they don’t, the BJP will say they have run away. If they do, the BJP will say all the three Gandhis (Sonia, who is likely to be sworn in as a Rajya Sabha MP on Wednesday) want to be in Parliament and that it is all in one family,” said a Congress leader.

Interestingly, the Congress’s decision to field Kharge’s son-in-law Radhakrishna Doddamani from Gulbarga in Karnataka means that three persons from the Congress president’s family are now in electoral politics as well. Kharge is the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha while his son Priyank is a minister in the Siddaramiah government in Karnataka.

In turn, Congress leaders point out that both Maneka Gandhi and her son Varun were MPs from the BJP, and that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is Lucknow MP while his son Pankaj is a sitting MLA. “The BJP cannot rake up such issues, it is very late. I think Rahul and Priyanka should decide without wasting much time. We cannot have a situation where our commanders are dithering and are unsure about entering the battlefield. In Wayanad, Rahul will win easily. It is the heartland which matters,” said a Congress Working Committee member.

Deciding against contesting from UP is also likely to strengthen the perception of the Congress transforming into a south-focussed party since it governs two states in the region — Karnataka and Telangana — and is barely hanging on to power in the north, where it governs only Himachal Pradesh.