In a significant move, the Pradesh Election Committee (PEC) of the Uttar Pradesh Congress has unanimously passed a resolution advocating for the nomination of a member of the Gandhi family from the Rae Bareli and Amethi Lok Sabha constituencies.
PCC has already proposed Rahul and Priyanka's names
Both the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) and the district Congress committees of Rae Bareli and Amethi have already proposed Priyanka Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi as potential candidates for the respective seats.
"The constituencies of Amethi and Rae Bareli hold a special significance for the Gandhi family, and the people in these areas consider the Gandhis as part of their own family. Therefore, the district Congress committees of Amethi and Rae Bareli, along with the UPCC, have jointly passed a resolution advocating for a member of the Gandhi family to contest elections from these constituencies. The PEC has endorsed this resolution," stated Avinash Pandey, the national general secretary and UP incharge for the Congress party, following the PEC meeting.
Pandey further elaborated that the resolution would be forwarded to AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior party leader Sonia Gandhi, urging them to consider fielding a member of the Gandhi family from Rae Bareli and Amethi.
PEC gives recommendation for 17 seats
In addition to this significant resolution, the PEC has also put forth recommendations for potential Congress candidates for all 17 Lok Sabha seats allocated to the party in the seat-sharing agreement with the Samajwadi Party. The remaining 63 seats, falling under the SP's quota, will have candidates decided by the party.
"The PEC has carefully considered the local dynamics and has provided recommendations for one or more candidates for each of the 17 Lok Sabha seats. These recommendations will be presented to the screening committee on Monday and subsequently to the Central Election Committee. Rahul Gandhi's recent yatra has generated a sense of optimism and anticipation for change. Our manifesto, based on the principles of justice for various segments of society, is also in the works," Pandey elaborated.
Proposed candidates
Sources familiar with the matter revealed some of the proposed candidates, including Ajay Rai for the Varanasi seat, Tanuj Punia for Barabanki, Raj Babbar for Fatehpur Sikri, Dheeraj Srivastava for Prayagraj, Ajay Kapoor or Alok Mishra for the Kanpur Lok Sabha seat. Additionally, Ajay Lallu, Keshav Yadav, and Akhilesh Pratap Singh have been suggested for the Deoria seat, while Virendra Chaudhary is proposed for Maharajganj. Other notable recommendations include Pradeep Aditya Jain for Jhansi and Imran Masood for Saharanpur.
Senior Congress leader Pradeep Mathur disclosed his recommendation of former governor Satyapal Mallik for the Mathura seat, highlighting the party's meticulous approach in selecting candidates for the upcoming elections.
