Feroze to Indira to Rahul via Gandhi family loyalists: Rae Bareli's journey with Congress

For Gandhi family, Rae Bareli parliamentary constituency in Uttar Pradesh holds a special place and for the Lok Sabha 2024 elections, Congress has fielded Rahul Gandhi from the seat, bringing the focus back on the VVIP segment.

For the unversed, among the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, Rae Bareli holds a strong political importance as it has an association with former prime ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, as well as Congress’ ex-president Sonia Gandhi.

Rae Bareli has traditionally been considered a stronghold for the Congress party. The Lok Sabha seat was first represented by Rahul’s grandfather Feroze Gandhi, who held the seat in the first two elections after Independence.

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It is also worth mentioning that Rae Bareli, over the years, has consistently elected Congress candidates to represent the constituency in the Lower House of Parliament. Since 1951 barring three occasions, Congress won the seat in Lok Sabha elections.

In the Lok Sabha polls 2024, polling on Rae Bareli seat will be held in the fifth round on 20 May.

Congress’ association with Rae Bareli

Rae Bareli’s electoral history intertwines closely with the Nehru-Gandhi family’s political lineage.

It all started with Feroze Gandhi who clinched bagged two consecutive wins on the seat in 1952 and 1957. He laid the foundation for the family’s connection with the constituency.

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This was later nurtured and strengthened by his wife Indira Gandhi, who won from the seat in 1967, 1971 and 1980.

However, in 1980, Indira contested from two seats - Rae Bareli and Medak in Telangana (then in Andhra Pradesh) – and chose to retain the Medak seat.

Consequently, a bypoll was warranted and Arun Nehru, grandnephew of Jawaharlal Nehru and also Rajiv Gandhi’s right-hand man, left his mark in Rae Bareli with a victory, followed by a second win in 1984.

Sheila Kaul, Jawaharlal Nehru’s sister-in-law and an aunt of Indira Gandhi, continued the trend with victories in 1989 and 1991.

Interestingly, there were only two instances, notably in 1962 and 1999, where a Nehru-Gandhi family member didn’t contest from Rae Bareli.

In 1999, another friend of the Gandhis, Captain Satish Sharma represented the Rae Bareli constituency, till Sonia Gandhi shifted there.

After entering into politics, Sonia chose to make her electoral foray from neighbouring Amethi Lok Sabha seat in 1999, but she soon vacated it for her son Rahul’s debut in politics in 2004.

Sonia subsequently held Rae Bareli four times between 2004 and 2019, although of late, her winning margins began dwindling.

In the last Lok Sabha polls in 2019, Sonia Gandhi won the Rae Bareli seat with a significant margin, securing 5,34,918 votes, defeating her closest rival, BJP’s Dinesh Pratap Singh who got around 3,40,306 votes.

Sonia had won on the seat in 2019 for the fifth consecutive time, winning 55.80 per cent of the votes.

Sonia’s record was, however, better than her mother-in-law Indira Gandhi.

On 15 February, 2024, Sonia announced her decision of not contesting from Rae Bareli constituency and said she would not be contesting in the Lok Sabha polls due to health and age issues.

In her farewell message to the people of Rae Bareli, she had expressed confidence that the seat which always stood by her and the Gandhis will continue to support her family in future also.

The only time Congress did not represent the Rae Bareli seat was in the wake of the Emergency in 1977 when Janata Party’s Raj Narain defeated Indira Gandhi,

The another time Rae Bareli witnessed a departure from its usual Congress allegiance was during the electoral cycles of 1996 and 1998 when Indira Gandhi’s cousins, Vikram Kaul and Deepa Kaul, faced defeats at the hands of the BJP during these years.

Who were Congress’ main challengers in Rae Bareli?

Though Congress enjoyed stronghold in Rae Bareli, it faced a stiff competition from Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Samajwadi Party (SP) in the 2000s. Things, however, changed after the Modi tsunami in 2014 with the BJP giving a strong fight since to wrestle the seat away from the Congress.

The Congress party did survive twice in 2014 and 2019 but time will tell what is in store for them in 2024.

Why Congress is fielding Rahul Gandhi from Rae Bareli?

Congress’ calculation behind fielding Rahul from Rae Bareli and not from Amethi possibly rests on the conclusion that Rae Bareli is a better, safer seat for the Gandhi scion, who lost Amethi to BJP’s Smriti Irani in 2019 by nearly 50,000 votes.

A report by PTI quoted sources saying that the Congress in its wisdom believed that Rae Bareli’s historical, emotional and electoral importance for the Gandhi family was higher than that of Amethi.

Understanding Rae Bareli

Rae Bareli has a diverse demographic profile with a mix of urban and rural populations. It is primarily an agrarian district, with agriculture being the mainstay of the economy. According to the 2011 Census of India, the population of Rae Bareli district was approximately 3.4 million, with a literacy rate of around 69 per cent.

The district also faces challenges related to infrastructure development, healthcare, and education, which often feature prominently in election campaigns.

Looking at past trends, during election campaigns, the Congress party in Rae Bareli typically organises large-scale rallies, door-to-door canvassing and outreach programmes. These efforts aim to mobilise supporters and connect with voters.

The Congress maintains a strong presence at the grassroots level in Rae Bareli. Local leaders and party workers play a crucial role in voter mobilisation and ensuring high turnout on election days.

Voter turnout in Rae Bareli has been relatively high compared to national averages. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the voter turnout in Rae Bareli was approximately 60 per cent, indicating active political participation among the electorate.