Priyanka breaks silence over not contesting from Varanasi
Amethi (UP), Apr 30: Breaking her silence over reasons for not contesting Lok Sabha elections from Varanasi against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress General Secretary for UP-East Priyanka Gandhi Tuesday said she had the "responsibility of looking after 41 seats and could not focus on just one".
"I didn't pull out...I took the advice of all senior leaders of our party and the advice of my colleagues in Uttar Pradesh and they firmly felt that I have a responsibility of looking after 41 seats," she told newspersons in Amethi from where her brother and Congress president Rahul Gandhi is seeking re-election.
"All my candidates are still wanting me to go to their constituencies and I felt that they will be a little disappointed if I focussed only on one place," she said, explaining the reason behind taking the decision.
Priyanka is in-charge of 41 Lok Sabha seats in the eastern part of the state.
Uttar Pradesh has 80 Lok Sabha seats and another party general secretary Jyotiraditya Scindia is in charge of the remaining constituencies.
To a question on whether deciding against contesting in the constituency would send a wrong signal, she said, "No I don't think so...I had said from the start that I will do what my party says...my party decided this and I am happy to follow the instructions."
Earlier, there was a buzz that Priyanka would fight the election from the prestigious seat.
She had sent ripples across the political spectrum with her reply to party workers' request to contest the ongoing general elections from her mother and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi's parliamentary constituency Rae Bareli.
Responding to them, she had asked, "Why not Varanasi?"
Even a few days back, Priyanka had reiterated she was willing to contest from Varanasi if the Congress president asks her to do so.
On his part, the Congress President, in an interview, had added to the speculation by saying he would like to keep the matter a suspense.
However, the Congress last week declared Ajai Rai as its candidate against Modi.
Rai had finished a distant third during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls in Varanasi.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
