Why Sonia Gandhi took the Rajya Sabha route to Parliament in 2024
Vibha Sharma
Chandigarh, February 14
Speculation that multiple-time Lok Sabha MP Sonia Gandhi may opt for the Rajya Sabha in 2024 was rife for a while now. Interestingly, however, the first clear indication that perhaps Sonia Gandhi, and some other Congress leaders as well, were contemplating taking a different route to reach Parliament came from none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Taking a jibe at the opposition, primarily the Congress party, in his hard-hitting speech in Lok Sabha, PM Modi recently said: “I see that many of you (Opposition) have even lost the courage to contest elections. Some seats were changed last time also…I have heard that many are looking to change their seats this time as well. I have also heard that many people now want to go to Rajya Sabha instead of Lok Sabha. They are looking for their paths by assessing the situation.”
Later, I&B Minister Anurag Thakur, too, claimed that no one from the Gandhi family in the Congress was “fit to contest Lok Sabha election from Uttar Pradesh this year.
“Those who won never went (there) to show their faces. Those who lost didn’t leave any opportunity to insult north Indians. Those who criticised Lord Rama are now afraid of even setting their foot on the land of Ram Lalla,” Thakur said.
Sonia Gandhi was the lone party winner in UP, winning Rae Bareli, in 2019.
She first came to the Lok Sabha from Amethi in the 1999 Lok Sabha poll, a seat she vacated for son Rahul Gandhi in 2004, shifting to Rae Bareli which she has represented since. However, from a vote share of 72.23% in 2009 to 63.8% in 2014 to 55.8% in 2019, her vote share in Rae Bareli has been going down to the advantage of the BJP.
Second member of Gandhi family in Rajya Sabha
The former Congress president was on Wednesday named the party candidate from Rajasthan, a move on the eve of the 2024 general election that created suspense on who would contest from family bastion Rae Bareli.
She will be the second member of the Gandhi family to enter Rajya Sabha after former prime minister Indira Gandhi who remained a member of the Upper House from August 1964 to February 1967.
Rae Bareli—the constituency
Rae Bareli is a constituency represented by who’s who of the Congress and Gandhi family, including Indira Gandhi and her husband Feroze Gandhi.
Except for 1977 when Janata Party’s Raj Narain served a humiliating defeat to Indira Gandhi and in 1996 and 1998 when BJP’s Ashok Singh was elected from Rae Bareli, it has been an out and out Congress stronghold.
Since 1952 till date, Rae Bareli has gone largely with the Congress, electing leaders like Feroze Gandhi, Indira Gandhi, Arun Nehru, Sheila Kaul, Satish Sharma and Sonia Gandhi.
Reasons, including 10 Janpath
The decision was apparently taken in mind her advancing age and health situation. Party leaders say the former Congress president had made up her mind on stepping back from active politics soon after the last general election, a decision that was firmed up after Mallikarjun Kharge took charge in 2022, replacing her.
Dismissing the jibes of “fear of failure”, they say Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had requested her to contest from his state. Congress leaders were of the opinion that since Indira Gandhi had also contested from Medak, it was an ideal constituency for Sonia Gandhi.
“Sonia Gandhi is our top leader and star attraction. By opting for the Rajya Sabha she will be able to concentrate more on strategising for the entire party than just for her seat,” they add.
But then why she needed to enter Parliament given that the strategising could have been done otherwise as well, the buzz is that the decision to opt for Rajya Sabha was taken in order to retain 10 Janpath—her residence for more than three decades now.
