Chunav Flashback: Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s choice to contest Lok Sabha election from Wayanad in Kerala in 2019 as well as to the Gandhi household bastion Amethi in Uttar Pradesh evoked numerous responses again then. While the Congress justified the choice by saying that the transfer was to strengthen the three southern states of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, political pundits are of the view that the transfer was a determined try to save the face of the Congress chief who was dropping Amethi.
However, Rahul Gandhi is just not the primary member of the household to go all the way in which down south to struggle elections. In 1977, Indira Gandhi was defeated by Raj Narain within the Lok Sabha Elections within the Raebareli Constituency. It was then in 1978 when Indira Gandhi once more contested the by-poll from Karnataka’s Chikkamagaluru and gained. This was an “ideal constituency” for her — 50 per cent ladies voters, 45 per cent backwards, scheduled castes and minorities, and practically half the inhabitants residing under the poverty line. Congress additionally coined a slogan for her “Ek sherni, sau langur Chikmagalur, Chikmagalur,” which did the appeal.
In 1980, too Indira Gandhi contested from Medak in undivided Andra Pradesh (Now in Telangana) and from Uttar Pradesh’s Raebareli. Observer stated this time too she wasn’t certain of her Raebareli win. She defeated S Jaipal Reddy, the firebrand Janata Party chief, who later joined the Congress. Indira gave up Raebareli and represented Medak until her assassination in 1984.
After Indira Gandhi, it was former Congress president Sonia Gandhi who fought from Bellary in 1999 alongside with Amethi seat. Congress determined to area her after the wariness of her Amethi seat. BJP fielded its heavyweight chief Sushma Swaraj, who put up a powerful opposition to the Congress chief. She even managed to study sufficient Kannada to deal with the voters of their native language in her rallies. However, Sonia Gandhi managed to win the seat however by a margin of simply 7 per cent votes.
