Congress in Kerala wants Rahul Gandhi to contest LS polls from Wayanad

AICC General Secretary Oommen Chandy on Saturday said the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee has requested Gandhi to contest from Wayanad, but he has not yet commented on the proposal

Pathanamthitta/Kottayam/New Delhi: The Congress in Kerala has suggested that party president Rahul Gandhi should contest the Lok Sabha election from the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, a party bastion in the state.

The party argued that Gandhi contesting from two seats in northern and southern regions of the country "will strengthen national unity and integration" and energise the party workers. AICC General Secretary Oommen Chandy Saturday said the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee has requested Gandhi to contest from Wayanad, but he has not yet commented on the proposal.

Speaking on the matter, Congress chief spokesperson Ranadeep Surjewala said, "A decision in this regard is yet to be taken by the Congress President. However, we thank Kerala PCC Unit, Congress workers, leaders and people of Kerala for the immense affection, for the respect as also for the desire with which they have urged Gandhi."

He said Amethi will remain Gandhi's "Karambhoomi". Gandhi had been contesting from the Amethi seat from 2004. Talking to reporters in Pathanamthitta district, Chandy said there is a demand from party leaders that Gandhi should contest from any of the Lok Sabha seats in South India and "we have requested Gandhi to contest from Wayanad seat". "He has not commented on the request so far. But we expect that there would be a positive response," Chandy said.

The party, which is contesting 16 out of 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, has announced the names of 14 candidates but has not declared its candidates from Wayanad and Vadakara. At Kottayam, the leader of opposition in the State Assembly, Ramesh Chennithala, said he had requested Gandhi to contest from Wayanad when the Congress president visited Kerala recently to launch the party's election campaign. He also said the matter was discussed with senior party leaders, including A K Antony.

"I once again request Gandhi to contest from Wayanad. Congress president contesting from Lok Sabha seats in South India and North India will strengthen national unity and integration," Chennithala said. Gandhi's candidature from Wayanad will energise the Congress party in South India and thus the party can win majority of seats from the region, the leaders said. The Congress had earlier proposed T Siddique, the Kozhikode District Congress Committee president, for the Wayanad seat but he has backed out.

Siddique said he also wants Gandhi to contest from the Wayanad seat. The election convention of the party-led UDF for Wayanad constituency will unanimously urge Gandhi to contest from the seat, he added. The Congress state units in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have also demanded that the party president contest the Lok Sabha elections from their respective states. The Congress earlier this month had announced that Gandhi will contest from his bastion Amethi and Sonia Gandhi from Rae Bareli.

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