With Priyanka Gandhi’s debut in focus, all eyes are on this Kerala constituency. South First spoke to local leaders and voters to get a feel of what they think about this high-stakes bypoll.
Published Oct 09, 2024 | 8:00 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 09, 2024 | 8:15 PM
With Priyanka Gandhi’s debut attracting attention, the eyes of the country are on Wayanad constituency. (Supplied)
With assembly elections wrapped in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir, the people of Wayanad are keeping their eyes on the national developments even as there is a buzz around the bypoll to the Lok Sabha constituency of Wayanad, the date of which has still to be declared.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is set to make a debut on the stage of electoral politics, drawing much interest to these polls. South First spoke to local leaders and voters.
Vini John, a voter from Muttil, Kalpetta, said, “When Rahul Gandhi was elected MP from Wayanad we had great expectations. He served for 5 years, yet Wayanad remains the most backward district in Kerala.”
“The recent landslides in Meppadi village have deeply affected us, but there seems to be no attention to the issue. While people are eager to welcome Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, it’s hard to see the relevance of a leader who has no strong connection to this constituency or its struggles. Priyanka Gandhi’s focus appears to be the northern states,” he said.
Vini John also regretted the expense of the by-election. “It’s all public money, I have nothing more to say,” she said.
KS Sudhi, a voter from Kenuchira, Koleri, told South First that he believes Priyanka Gandhi Vadra would represent the constituency in the Lok Sabha. “She could win with a record majority, possibly surpassing Rahul Gandhi’s previous margin,” he said, highlighting the considerable media attention Priyanka Gandhi has garnered. Her candidature, he said, has set the national media researching the region.
Sudhi said the public is disappointed with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s second term and that too could work in Priyanka Gandhi’s favour. He pointed out that some of CM Pinarayi Vijayan’s accomplishments have not received much attention, and Wayanad has traditionally been a strong Congress bastion, with a high population of minorities and tribal communities. He predicted a poor showing by the BJP.
Sudhi remarked that no party could expect to win the election without addressing the landslides that have claimed over 230 lives in the district this monsoon. The region remains prone to landslides. He mentioned also that even though Prime Minister Modi visited the region, the Centre had not released any money as financial assistance. The Chief Minister’s Relief Fund had received ₹514.14 crore, which was collected from the general public.
The CPI does not have a large following in the constituency, Sudhi remarked. “It struggles even to win panchayat elections here. Maybe if this seat were held by the CPI(M), the contest might have been keener,” he said.
OV Appachan, District Congress Committee vice president of Wayanad, told South First that work on the campaign for Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has begun. Block level officers have been selected for voting booths and committees have started planning campaign strategies. Voter lists have been updated, and all that work had been completed by 30 September. The UDF meeting is set to begin soon.
Appachan said Priyanka Gandhi’s victory would be with a record majority. He said the three assembly constituencies of Eranad, Nilambur and Vandoor fall in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, and recent controversy over Malappuram, especially after an interview in the media by CM Pinarayi Vijayan that later had to be corrected, would all go towards strengthening the performance of the Congress. In previous elections, Rahul Gandhi had secured the most votes from these three assembly constituencies.
The landslides of July had affected a small part of the constituency, and would not significantly impact the Lok Sabha by-polls, Appachan said. He said the media had chosen to name the landslide after the district, rather that the villages where it occurred, giving the impression that the whole district had been impacted. Congress and its allies had worked to help those affected, he said. Priyanka Gandhi, he said, would visit Wayanad once election dates are announced for the election campaign.
Suresh Taloor, a district panchayat member from the CPI(M) said his party has no need to form new election committees in Wayanad – the ones that worked for the previous election are active. “We did not disband any of the committees formed for the previous election, so once the election date is declared, we can start working immediately,” he said.
Taloor asked what the constituency achieved from having Rahul Gandhi as MP. He said what was needed was a leader who understood the land. “Wayanad is grappling with issues like the night travel ban, railway projects, man-animal conflict, and tribal concerns. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will fail as an MP, just like Rahul,” he said.
He dismissed outright the possibility that divisions within the Left would impact election outcomes. “In the previous election, Annie Raja said Wayanad LDF stood united for her campaign. CPI might express different opinions on various issues, but when it comes to elections, the Left stands together,” Taloor said, underlining the LDF’s commitment to opposing both Hindu and Muslim extremism.
“Congress lost Haryana; that could happen in Wayanad,” he said.
The Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency includes the assembly segments of Mananthavady, Sultan Bathery, Kalpetta (all in Wayanad district), Thiruvambady (Kozhikode district), and Eranad, Nilambur, and Wandoor (Malappuram district). Rahul Gandhi won the Wayanad seat in the last two elections, but this time he retained his seat from Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh, necessitating a by-election in Wayanad.
The by-election has been delayed due to the recent landslide disaster in Mundakkai-Chooralmala.
Historically, Wayanad has been a stronghold of the United Democratic Front (UDF). In 2014, M.I. Shanavas of the UDF secured victory with a margin of 20,870 votes. When Rahul Gandhi entered the fray in 2019, he transformed the political landscape, winning by a massive 4,31,770 votes. While his majority dipped slightly in 2024, he still retained a comfortable lead with a margin of 3,64,442 votes.
The UDF is now banking on Priyanka Gandhi to maintain this winning streak, aiming for an even larger majority than Rahul Gandhi’s. In Nilambur, Wandoor, and Eranad, there are already large boards welcoming Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
In the 2024 election, Rahul Gandhi won 59.69 percent of the vote, CPI’s Annie Raja garnered 26.09 percent, and BJP’s K. Surendran secured 13 percent.
(Edited by Rosamma Thomas)
