No one will see Rahul’s candidature from Wayanad as Congress’ fight against BJP: Kerala CM

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday hit out at Congress president Rahul Gandhi over his decision to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Wayanad and said that people of the state will not see his candidature from the constituency as Congress’ battle against the BJP. "Rahul Gandhi's candidature from Wayanad is a challenge to Left. Wayanad is one among the 20 constituencies and doesn't need to be seen as any different. We will fight him," Vijayan said.

The Kerala CM said that Rahul Gandhi should have chosen a BJP state to contest elections instead of a Left-ruled state. "He (Rahul Gandhi) should have contested from a constituency where BJP is contesting. This is nothing but a fight against the Left," Pinarayi Vijayan said.

Former CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat also criticised Rahul Gandhi’s decision to choose Kerala’s Wayanad as his second seat, saying it was against his party’s national commitment to fight the BJP.

"Decision of Congress to field Rahul Gandhi from Wayanad shows their priority is to fight the Left in Kerala. It goes against Congress's national commitment to fight the BJP, as in Kerala it's Left Democratic Front which is the main force fighting BJP," Prakash Karat said.

Earlier in the day, Congress party announced that Rahul Gandhi, who currently represent Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi constituency in the Lok Sabha, will contest the upcoming polls from Kerala's Wayanad as the second seat.

Explaining the Congress chief's decision, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala cited the "geographical importance" of the constituency and said that the move was taken to fight the "discriminatory" attitude of the BJP towards the southern states.