The Congress has retained the two Lok Sabha seats for which byelections were held recently. AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has won Wayanad in Kerala by a landslide margin while the party’s Ravindra Vasantrao Chavan has won Nanded in Maharashtra by a thin margin of 1,457 votes.
In Wayanad, Ms. Vadra defeated CPI’s Satyan Mokeri by a margin of 4,10,931 votes, which is higher than the margin of 3,64,422 votes by which her brother Rahul Gandhi won the seat in the 2024 general elections. In 2019, Mr. Gandhi’s winning margin was 4,31,770 votes. Ms. Vadra got about 65% of the votes polled and Mr. Mokeri got 22.08%. BJP’s Navya Haridas got more than 11% of the votes. The byelection to Wayanad was required after Mr. Gandhi decided to vacate it to retain Raebareli seat, which too he won in the 2024 general elections.
‘Wayanad victory a testament to Rahul’s hard work’
After winning, Ms. Vadra on Saturday (November 23, 2024) said she looked for to be the voice of the people of Wayanad in Parliament. Speaking to reporters, she said she was thankful to the people of Wayanad for giving her the honour to represent them. “It’s a testament to the fact that my brother worked hard there and their love for him, and their trust in me. I feel it’s a great honour and I will respect it fully... I was just happy getting the love of the people,” she said in a social media post. “I will make sure that over time, you truly feel this victory has been your victory and the person you chose to represent you understands your hopes and dreams and fights for you as one of your own. I look forward to being your voice in Parliament!” she added.
In Nanded, the byelection was necessitated after the death of Vasantrao Chavan, the Congress leader and MP who represented it. The party fielded his son Ravindra Vasantrao Chavan from the seat. He defeated BJP’s Santukrao Hambarde by 1,457 votes.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress had won Nanded by a margin of 59,442 votes. The BJP won the seat in 2019, defeating Ashok Chavan, now a BJP leader then associated with the Congress.
Published - November 23, 2024 10:02 pm IST
