Rahul Gandhi’s decision of resigning from Wayanad Lok Sabha seat in favour of Rae Bareli is a well calculated move by him. The Gandhi family had taken lessons from its forays into the southern States for political rehabilitation.
After getting defeated in the traditional seat of Rae Bareli in 1977 by the hands of Raj Narain of Janata Party by a big margin of 55202 votes with 16.62 per cent of votes. It was one of the big margins in that election.
In 1978 Indira Gandhi contested from Chikmagalur. D. B. Chandre Gowda who won from Chikmagalur seat in 1977 with 59 per cent plus votes had vacated his seat for the entry of Indira Gandhi in Lok Sabha. In the by-poll Indira Gandhi won the seat but in 1980 she did not dare to contest from the seat and filled her nomination from Medak in erstwhile State of Andhra Pradesh.
In 1980 Indira Gandhi contested from two seats of Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh and Medak in Andhra Pradesh. Indira Gandhi was so conscious of her defeat in Rae Bareli in 1977 that she did not venture to contest from her seat of Chikmagalur in 1980.
Indira Gandhi contested in 1980 from both seats of Rae Bareli and Medak. Indira Gandhi resigned from Rae Bareli to make way for her cousin Arun Nehru to Parliament. In the by-poll Arun Nehru won the seat.
After assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984 the Congress party lost the Medak Lok Sabha seat. The Congress party won the seat in 1977 but in 1984 the Congress party lost the seat. In 1984 when the Congress party swept the entire country the Congress party lost the seat. P. Manik Reddy of the Telugu Desam Party won the seat by defeating senior Congress party leader P Shiv Shanker.
In 1999 in a dramatic political turn of events Soniya Gandhi filled her nomination from Bellary Lok Sabha seat in Karnataka. She was the second member from her family to contest from the southern State besides Indira Gandhi. In 1999 Sonia Gandhi won from both her contested seats of Amethi and Bellary. Sonia Gandhi opted Amethi and resigned from Bellary seat. Afterwards the Congress party got defeated from Bellary LS seat in 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019 LS elections.
Rahul Gandhi took lessons from Medak and Bellary Lok Sabha seats and decided to resign from Wayanad in favour of Rae Bareli. Rahul Gandhi got 66.17 per cent vote in Rae Bareli while in Wayanad LS seat he got 59.69 per cent vote. He won RaeBareli seat with more victory margin than that of Wayanad LS seat so it would be easier and safer for Priyanka Vadra to start her political career from Rae Bareli instead of Wayanad. All members of the Gandhi family started their electoral career from Uttar Pradesh but Priyanka Vadra is going to be the first person from the family who is going to start outside Uttar Pradesh. Besides in Kerala the Congress party is losing its foothold swiftly by the hands of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Besides the Congress party ally the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) is also increasing its pressure on the Congress party to concede space for the party in Kerala.
So Rahul Gandhi had resigned from Wayanad considering minute political issues and now Priyanka Vadra will have to negotiate the IUML hurdle and Bellary and Medak agony.
