The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday nominated Kerala BJP President K. Surendran to contest for the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, currently held by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Taking to social media platform X, the Kerala BJP chief expressed his commitment to giving his best to fulfill the ‘trust the organisation has placed in him’.
“I am delighted to share with you that @BJP4India has announced my name as the NDA candidate in Wayanad against the #INDI Alliance leader Rahul Gandhi in his sitting constituency. I am extending my heartfelt thanks to Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi Ji, Shri @JPNadda Ji, @AmitShah Ji, and @blsanthosh Ji for this opportunity. I am committed to giving my best to fulfill the trust the organization has placed in me. Seeking your blessings in this new endeavor. #AbkiBaar400Paar,” Surendran wrote.
I am delighted to share with you that @BJP4India has announced my name as the NDA candidate in Wayanad against the #INDI Alliance leader Rahul Gandhi in his sitting constituency. I am extending my heartfelt thanks to Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi Ji, Shri @JPNadda Ji, @AmitShah…— K Surendran(മോദിയുടെ കുടുംബം) (@surendranbjp) March 24, 2024
The BJP also named four more candidates for the Lok Sabha elections in Kerala, scheduled for April 26. Out of the 20 seats in the state, the BJP-led NDA had already announced candidates for the other 16 seats.
The CPI(M)-led LDF and Congress-led UDF have also put forward candidates in all constituencies. The ruling party in Kerala, CPI, has nominated senior leader Annie Raja as its candidate for the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat.
Congress stronghold
The Wayanad constituency in Kerala has historically been a stronghold of the Congress party, similar to Raebareli and Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. Congress has won Wayanad in the last three Lok Sabha elections by significant margins.
In the last two general elections in 2009 and 2014, the Congress candidate MI Shanavas won in Wayanad. He passed away in 2018.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi won the Wayanad constituency in Kerala after losing Amethi to BJP’s Smriti Irani. He defeated his nearest CPI candidate PP Suneer by a margin of over 4.31 lakh votes, securing a massive 64.8% of the vote share.
Competing for the same seat, Thushar Vellapally, BJP candidate and also the state NDA chairman, came in third place, receiving only about 78,000 votes.
On Sunday, the BJP unveiled its fifth list of candidates, naming 111 more contenders for the forthcoming seven-phase Lok Sabha elections, starting from April 19. The list features notable figures including Dharmendra Pradhan, Arun Govil, Ravi Shankar Prasad, and others.
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