Communist Party of India Annie Raja’s candidature from Wayanad has once again ignited the debate on whether Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should seek a re-election from the seat, where he faces a friendly party, or actually take the battle to the BJP.
CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat questioned the “message” that such a contest in Wayanad would deliver at a time when all the Opposition parties are working on an anti-BJP campaign for the 2024 Lok Sabha election. “The question here is not whether it is the right thing or wrong thing, that is for the Congress to decide. Our limited point here is that you (the Congress) are saying that you are fighting against the BJP, but the seat that you have picked, you will contest against a CPI candidate. Congress needs to decide what message they want to deliver by doing so,” Ms. Karat said.
Lobbing the ball right back at the Left, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, asked why the Left was taking on the Congress in parts of Kerala where the BJP was strong.
