Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was sworn in as the Lok Sabha member from Kerala’s Wayanad on Thursday morning – in a kasavu, a traditional Kerala sari and with a copy of the red-bound Indian Constitution in her hand.
She replaces her brother Rahul Gandhi as the Wayanad MP, after he surrendered the seat upon winning the family stronghold of Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh in the parliamentary elections held earlier this year.
The 52-year-old is now the third member of the Gandhi family in Parliament; her mother, Sonia Gandhi, is the party’s Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan.
“I’m very happy,” Ms Priyanka said, as she was greeted with loud cheers during her oath-taking.
Earlier, she thanked the Wayanad voters in a long post on X, saying she was overwhelmed by the trust people have placed in her, reported NDTV.
“I will make sure that over time, you truly feel this victory has been your victory and the person you chose to represent you understands your hopes and dreams and fights for you as one of your own. I look forward to being your voice in Parliament,” she said.
Ms Priyanka recorded a massive win from Wayanad when votes were counted last Saturday. She polled over 622,000 votes, and finished more than 400,000 ahead of second-placed Sathyan Mokeri of the Communist Party of India and 512,000 more than the BJP’s Navya Haridas
The triumph marked her electoral debut – a long-awaited moment for the Congress and its supporters, and one talked about before every recent major election, including the April-June parliamentary elections. At the time, there was a buzz that she could contest from the Congress’ Amethi bastion in Uttar Pradesh.
Her Parliament bow comes at a critical time for her party and the opposition INDIA bloc, both of which have struggled to convince voters that it is a viable alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP.
Her presence in the Lok Sabha will add a new dimension to the party’s strategy, particularly in the context of the southern states and its women voters.
Ms Gandhi will now join a list of MPs who have at least one family member in either house of the Parliament.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and his wife Dimple Yadav are both members of the Lok Sabha. Mr Yadav won from Kannauj in the Lok Sabha elections and his wife was elected from the Mainpuri seat in Uttar Pradesh.
Mr Ahliesh’s cousin Akshay Yadav won from the Ferozabad seat, while another cousin Dharmendra Yadav won from Badaun.
Mr Pappu Yadav, who won the Purnia seat in Bihar as an independent candidate with a margin of over 23,000 votes, is a Lok Sabha MP. His wife Ranjeet Ranjan is a Rajya Sabha MP from Chhattisgarh. She was elected to the House in 2022.
Maharashtra stalwart Sharad Pawar is a Rajya Sabha MP who was elected in 2014. His daughter Supriya Sule represents Baramati constituency in the Lok Sabha.
