Ending speculations that Priyanka Gandhi may contest from Varanasi, the Indian National Congress announced veteran politician Ajai Rai as the candidate in Varanasi for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The announcement was made through a press release by the party on Thursday. Ajai Rai will be going head-to-head with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the high-profile constituency. Ajai Rai had contested against Modi in the 2014 elections, but only secured a distant third in the results after Modi and Aam Aadmi Party’s Arvind Kejriwal. Ajai Rai had also contested in the 2009 general elections from Varanasi on a Samajwadi Party ticket.
The announcement came after days of speculation in the media over the candidature of Congress’s General Secretary for Uttar Pradesh (East) Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was holding a roadshow when the announcement was made. Prior to the annoucement, Congress President Rahul Gandhi was asked whether Priyanka would be contesting from Varanasi. He responded that suspense was not a bad thing, further fueling speculation. Priyanka Gandhi joined mainstream politics recently after years of working behind the scenes for her family.
Apart from Narendra Modi from the BJP and Ajai Rai from Congress, Shalini Yadav will represent the Samajwadi Party from Varnasi. In 2014, Narendra Modi won from Varanasi, defeating Arvind Kejriwal with a margin of over 3 lakh votes.
Varanasi, with five assembly segments, will go to polls on May 19. The filing of nominations in underway for that constituency, and the last date for filing by interested candidates is April 29. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to file his nominations to contest from Varanasi on Friday.