New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday ended the suspense over the candidature of Varanasi Lok Sabha seat by declaring Ajay Rai, who placed third in the 2014 election, as the party's nominee for the seat instead of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Notably, Priyanka Gandhi had expressed her willingness to contest from the seat only on the wishes of party president Rahul Gandhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi currently represents the seat.
The Congress announced its nominee for the seat on the day PM Modi started a mega roadshow in Varanasi as a prelude to filing his election papers on Friday. The Congress reportedly debated pitting Priyanka Gandhi, often called its 'Brahmastra', against PM Modi but caution won out.
The Millennium Post was the first to report that Priyanka Gandhi would only be fielded from Varanasi if Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati agrees to extend her support as the Samajwadi Party (SP) was 'ready' to withdraw the candidature of Shalini Yadav, whose name was declared by the SP on Tuesday. P5