Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday said that party’s Central Election Committee (CEC) has empowered the party president Mallikarjun Kharge to declare candidates for Amethi and Rae Bareilly seats and he will formally announce the decision in next 24-30 hours.
Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, he said, “Till that is done, all information, tickers, and office orders are all fake.”
In a CEC meeting on Saturday, AICC in-charge of party affairs in UP Avinash Pandey and CLP leader in the state Aradhana Mishra urged Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Sonia Gandhi to give tickets to both Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from Amethi and Raebareli.
However, no decision was taken at the meeting, PTI had reported citing sources.
During the meeting, chaired by Kharge, many panel members had supported the views of the UP leaders and left the decision on the top leadership.
“You have to wait for a few more days. When the names of candidates come from people to me and I sign the notification, it will be announced,” Kharge had said at a press conference on Saturday.
In Amethi, Rahul Gandhi won the consecutive Lok Sabha elections of 2004, 2009, and 2014. However, the tables turned in 2019 when the traditionally Congress-leaning constituency opted for BJP’s Smriti Irani as its MP.
In contrast, Rae Bareli has remained steadfast in its allegiance to the Congress since 1999. Initially claimed by Congress’ Satish Sharma in 1999, the constituency has consistently elected former Congress leader Sonia Gandhi as its representative from 2004 until 2019.
Both Amethi and Rae Bareli will go to polls in the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha polls on 20 May.
With inputs from agencies
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