As Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s 12-day visit to Wayanad continues to raise eyebrows in Kerala, with several local party workers saying they are in the dark, Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi and Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi joined her on Friday.
A week into the tour of her Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, Priyanka has been treading a different path, with the usual fanfare missing. No crowds have gathered to see her as she makes her visits and the state Congress, unaware of her schedule, has not arranged any functions for her. Congress sources said both Rahul and Sonia Gandhi had no official functions in Wayanad either and would spend three to four days on a “private visit”.
Priyanka’s visit to Wayanad comes at a time when the local party unit is in crisis over internal disputes, the suicide of a local worker, and the attempted suicide of a former district leader’s daughter-in-law.
Priyanka, who has been in Wayanad since September 11, will remain in the constituency till September 22. For the final stretch, she has been joined by her mother and brother who on Friday arrived at the Taj Wayanad Resort and Spa near Banasura Lake, where the MP has been camping for the past week.
The party’s Wayanad district chief N D Appachan said Friday, “The party in Wayanad is not informed about her programmes. Her visit to places and persons is not within the party system. Everything has been decided by her office. She does not want to get involved in local politics.”
Confirming that the party does not know about the MP’s events, another Congress source said the visit was poorly timed. “Her constituency tour has clashed with the Assembly session, which began on Monday. Out of seven Assembly seats under the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, five are represented by Congress-led UDF members. This Assembly session is crucial for the Congress to build strong anti-government sentiments ahead of local body elections. When the Opposition has several issues to take on the ruling front, how can the UDF divert its focus to Wayanad?” the leader said.
Over the last week, Priyanka has visited several Bishops, a Muslim cleric, and several writers at their residences. She also interacted with some survivors of the 2024 landslide and workers of a tea estate. Priyanka spent three hours at the home and farm of indigenous rice preserver Cheruvayal Raman, a Padma Shri winner. While visiting Nilambur, she spent around an hour at the railway station discussing developmental issues. She also found time to meet the cave-dwelling Kattunaikkan tribal community in the Nilambur forest.
Priyanka also inaugurated an anganwadi in Sulthan Bathery, where she asked children about their favorite toys before going into town to buy the toys and delivering them at the anganwadi.
On Thursday, Priyanka visited the Wayanad Muslim Orphanage in Muttil in which Congress ally Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has a considerable stake. However, the IUML, which had campaigned relentlessly for Priyanka’s Wayanad Lok Sabha bypoll last year, was not privy to the visit, except for the office-bearers at the orphanage. She also met farm stay entrepreneurs and dairy farmers at Thiruvambady during the day.
Congress sources said Priyanka’s “reluctance” to join party programmes during her visit was evident on Friday, when Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Ramesh Chennithala held the Wayanad leg of his “Walk Against Drugs” campaign. While Chennithala was conducting the walkathon in Kalpetta, Sonia and Priyanka passed by after a courtesy pause. “Priyanka joining the event in her constituency or inaugurating it would have enthused the party cadres. Workers are not happy about this approach,” sources said.
On Friday, Sonia joined Priyanka to visit a regional coffee research station of the Coffee Board of India at Chundale and the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation at Puthurvayal.
What’s happening in Wayanad Congress
As Priyanka arrived in her constituency on September 11, local party leader and Mullankolly village panchayat member Jose Nelledam, 57, allegedly died by suicide. His death came just days after another local Congress leader’s arrest and subsequent release laid bare the issue of factionalism in the party’s Wayanad unit. K Thankachan, 57, was arrested and spent 17 days in judicial custody after explosives and a cache of illegal liquor was seized from his possession. However, he got a reprieve after a reinvestigation by police found he was framed in the case. Emerging from jail, Thankachan alleged that the party’s district chief Appachan and others, including Nelledam, were behind his arrest.
On September 14, Padmaja, daughter-in-law of a former district Congress treasurer N M Vijayan, also attempted to kill herself. Last December, Vijayan and his son Jijesh had allegedly died by suicide in connection to an cash-for-job scam at a party-controlled cooperative bank in 2019. Padmaja attempted suicide after publicly criticising the party for failing to provide financial support to her family.
On Friday, Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal and state party chief Sunny Joseph had a discussion with the Wayanad District Congress Committee on damage control measures.