Chennai: Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was leading at his seat in Kerala’s Wayanad by 3.5 lakh votes against his opponent Annie Raja.
Rahul’s vote count had surpassed a record four lakh votes in 2019. As of 4 pm, the Congress leader had secured 6.3 lakh votes against Communist Party of India’s (CPI) candidate Annie Raja, who had 2.76 lakh votes.
The constituency’s BJP candidate and party’s state president K. Surendran polled 1.39 lakh votes as of 4 pm, pushing the national party to third place.
Rahul, who contested from Wayanad for the first time in 2019, got a thumping majority of 431,770 votes over his nearest rival P.P. Suneer of the CPI.
The then Congress president garnered 7,06,367 votes, followed by Suneer with 274,597 and NDA candidate Thushar Vellappally with 78,816 votes.
This year, Wayanad recorded a voter turnout of 73.57 percent compared to the 80.37 percent (including postal votes) in 2019. Wayanad parliamentary constituency comprises three assembly segments of Wayanad (Mananthavady, Sulthan Bathery, and Kalpetta) and Malappuram (Eranad, Nilambur, Wandoor), besides Thiruvambady of Kozhikode. The district of Wayanad, according to the 2011 census, has a sizable minority population.
A constituency that has stood with the Congress since it was formed in 2009, Wayanad was a cakewalk for Rahul Gandhi in 2019. His acceptance among the locals was visible throughout his rallies that saw huge participation from across the state. His candidature also helped the Congress-led UDF to sweep Kerala winning 19 of the 20 seats.
This year, opposition parties have targeted Rahul for his absence from the constituency, which has also been plagued by many local issues such as increasing man-animal conflict and the night travel ban.
The popularity of Annie Raja among locals, especially among women, and her familiarity with the district too have impacted the Congress’s hopes. Contrary to the Congress, Annie Raja started her booth-level campaigns early in March in the constituency.
However, the Congress fought these challenges by projecting Rahul, who has emerged as the opposition face against PM Narendra Modi. The party’s district unit organised mega rallies whenever the national leader visited the constituency.
Rahul too forged a close relationship with voters and often referred to Wayanad as his “home” in his speeches. The party’s local leaders also told ThePrint that voters never complained about Rahul’s absence.
According to a Congress pamphlet in Wayanad, Rahul spent Rs 121 crore for the development of rural roads in the constituency, making him an MP who made the most of the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) fund besides spending several crores on the upgradation of anganwadis, health and education sectors.
(Edited by Tony Rai)