Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and cousin of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Varun Gandhi, has “rejected” his party’s offer to contest the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 from Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli constituency, a traditional stronghold of the Gandhi family.
News18 reported citing sources that Varun Gandhi had been “considering” the party’s offer for more than a week before rejectiung it.
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The BJP’s proposal was driven by recurring media reports indicating that the Congress was likely to field Priyanka Gandhi from the seat.
The News18 report, quoting sources, further said that the Uttar Pradesh BJP supported the idea of Varun Gandhi contesting from Rae Bareli. When approached with the proposal, Varun Gandhi requested time to consider it. However, he ultimately declined the offer, citing his reluctance to engage in an electoral battle that could turn personal and contentious.
Earlier, When asked about Gandhi’s absence on the dais during Prime Minister Modi’s public address in on April 9, party’s Uttar Pradesh unit chief Bhupendra Chaudhary responded by saying, “Having all people on the dais is not an issue. The party has given responsibility to its leaders. It must have thought something good for him.”
Congress’s influence in Pilibhit constituency
Varun’s mother has been active in politics in Pilibhit for a total of seven terms across different years.
1984: Maneka Gandhi lost to Rajiv Gandhi in Amethi by a substantial margin of over 2.7 lakh votes.
1989: She won the Pilibhit seat for the first time on a Janata Dal ticket.
1991: Maneka lost the Pilibhit seat to BJP’s Parshuram.
1996: She regained the Pilibhit constituency while running on a Janata Dal ticket.
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1998 and 1999: Maneka won Pilibhit, first as an independent in 1998 and then again in 1999.
2004: Maneka joined the BJP and secured victory from Pilibhit.
2009: Maneka moved to Aonla, allowing her son Varun Gandhi, then 29 years old, to contest from Pilibhit. Varun defeated Congress’s VM Singh by over 2.8 lakh votes, securing more than 50% of the total votes.
2014: Maneka returned to Pilibhit and won in the Lok Sabha elections as the BJP came to power under Narendra Modi. Meanwhile, Varun Gandhi won the Sultanpur seat.
2019: Maneka shifted to Sultanpur, allowing Varun to run from Pilibhit, where he won the seat.
However, this time, BJP has fielded Uttar Pradesh Minister Jitin Prasada from the Pilibhit seat.
In a post on X, penned a heartfelt note on Pilibhit and said, “Today, as I am writing this letter, countless memories have made me emotional. I remember that 3-year-old little boy who came to Pilibhit for the first time in 1983 holding his mother’s finger, how did he know that one day this land would become his workplace and the people here would become his family.”
According to the Election Commission, Pilibhit recorded 61.91 per cent voter turnout. Uttar Pradesh, the state with the highest representation in Parliament, electing 80 MPs, is conducting its voting across all seven phases.
The subsequent phases in the state are scheduled for May 7 (phase three), May 13 (phase four), May 20 (phase five), May 23 (phase six), and June 1 (phase seven).
The votes from all phases will be counted on June 4.
(With inputs from agencies)
