"Wayanad has two MPs": Rahul Gandhi after Priyanka files nomination for by polls

Wayanad (Kerala) [India], October 23 (ANI): Shortly after Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra filed her nomination from Wayanad, her brother and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said on Wednesday that the parliamentary constituency now has two Members of Parliament.
Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday, while addressing a rally in Wayanad, said, "Wayanad is the constituency in the country that has two Members of Parliament... One is the official and the other is the unofficial MP; both will work to protect the interests of the Wayand. "
The Wayanad seat was vacated by Rahul Gandhi, who retained the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha Constituency. The by-poll in the constituency is scheduled to be held on November 13.
Rahul Gandhi further said that her sister Priyanka considers the people of Wayanad as her family, asking them to look after her sister.
"I am confident that my sister is ready to sacrifice everything for her family. Priyanka considers the people of Wayanad as her family. I also need a favour from you. That I request the people of Wayand to look after my sister and protect her. She will put her entire energy into looking after the problems of Wayand," Rahul said.
Remembering the time when his father died, he said, "My mother is sitting here. After my father died, it was my sister who looked after my mother. she was 17 years old when Papa died; my mother lost everything; my sister lost everything, but my sister looked after my mother."
"I think all of you understand very well the relation I shared with the people of Wayanad. Priyanka in her speech said that you protected me and looked after me when I needed you the most, but when she was saying that, I thought that what Wayanad had done for me could not be explained in terms of words," he added.
Priyanka Gandhi signed her nomination papers in the presence of local leaders at a resort in Kerala, according to Congress sources. She filed her nomination in the presence of Chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party Sonia Gandhi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi.
Following nominations, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were at the roadshow and the pair was seen waving and greeting party workers and supporters at the venue.
For the upcoming bypolls, Priyanka Gandhi is pitted against BJP candidate Navya Haridas and Left Democratic Front's (LDF) candidate Sathyan Mokeri. Haridas is a two-time Kozhikode Corporation councillor.
If Priyanka Gandhi wins from Wayanad, she will be the third person from the Gandhi family to enter Parliament. Priyanka Gandhi was entrusted with taking care of the Gandhi family's stronghold in Amethi and Rae Bareli before entering active politics in 2019, where she emerged as an important strategist for her party. In 2019, she was appointed as the AICC General Secretary in charge of the eastern part of Uttar Pradesh. Later in 2020, she became the General Secretary in charge of the entire state of Uttar Pradesh. (ANI)