Priyanka Gandhi marks political debut, signs her nomination for Wayanad bypolls

Priyanka Gandhi, along with her brother Rahul Gandhi and senior Congress leaders, will hold a roadshow before filing her nomination for the Wayanad bypolls.

In Short

• Rahul Gandhi vacated Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, leading to bypolls
• Priyanka Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi to hold roadshow in Wayanad before nomination filing
• Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge to be present with Priyanka Gandhi

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Wednesday marked her electoral debut by signing her nomination papers for the upcoming Lok Sabha bypoll in Kerala's Wayanad.

The by-election for the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat became necessary after Rahul Gandhi, who won the Lok Sabha polls from there and Raebareli constituency, decided to vacate the seat.

Priyanka Gandhi, along with her brother Rahul Gandhi, will hold a roadshow before filing her nomination for the Wayanad bypolls later today.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi and senior party leaders will be present with Priyanka Gandhi during the filing of the nomination papers.

Earlier on Tuesday, October 22, Priyanka Gandhi arrived in the hill district along with Sonia Gandhi and met the local party leaders. Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, reached the district subsequently.

Speaking on Priyanka's candidature, Rahul Gandhi said, "The people of Wayanad hold a special place in my heart, and I can't imagine a better representative for them than my sister, Priyanka Gandhi. I'm confident she will be a passionate champion of Wayanad's needs and a powerful voice in Parliament."

Priyanka has been pitted against BJP's Navya Haridas and senior Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Sathyan Mokeri, who has been fielded as the Left Democratic Front (LDF) candidate.

The voting for the Wayanad bypolls will take place on November 13, while the counting of votes will be carried out on November 23.