Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Sonia to campaign for Rahul in Raebareli on May 17, Akhilesh to join

This will be Sonia's first and probably the last election rally in this edition of the Lok Sabha. She has been keeping away from election campaigns for the past some years owing to health issues.

New Delhi: Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi will campaign for her son and party's main face Rahul Gandhi in Raebareli along with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday with the party planning a blitzkrieg in the last two days of campaigning.

This will be Sonia's first and probably the last election rally in this edition of the Lok Sabha polls. She has been keeping away from election campaigns for the past some years owing to health issues.

Sonia and Akhilesh will address the campaign programme in ITI Ground in Rae Bareli at 1 PM. Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Rahul's sister who is coordinating the campaign, will also be present. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had campaigned for Rahul on Wednesday.

Rahul is contesting from Rae Bareli, a seat Sonia has been representing since 2004 and vacated this time.

His candidature was announced only hours before the deadline for nomination ended on May 3 and since May 6, Priyanka has been holding fort for her brother in Rae Bareli. Earlier, there was speculation that Rahul would contest from Amethi, which he lost last time, and Priyanka from Rae Bareli or vice versa.

With Priyanka refusing to enter the poll fray, it was decided that Rahul will contest from Rae Bareli while fielding family loyalist Kishori Lal Sharma from Amethi.

Priyanka has addressed close to 50 election meetings in Rae Bareli since May 8 besides holding several workers' meeting to finetune the campaign in both Rae Bareli and Amethi. She had stepped out of Rae Bareli and Amethi since May 6 when she arrived in Rae Bareli only once to address rallies in Maharashtra.

During this election, Sonia has released three videos, including one with Rahul talking about Rae Bareli, besides addressing a rally on party's manifesto in Jaipur on April 6. She was also present at the press conference where the manifesto was released.

Sonia made an unprecedented appearance at a Congress press conference on March 21 to take on the Modi government over Income Tax Department action against party accounts followed by being present at the I.N.D.I.A. rally in Ramlila Maidan on March 31.