New Delhi [India]: Congress leader Pramod Tiwari criticized BJP’s Navya Haridas for challenging Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s victory in the Wayanad Lok Sabha bypoll, labeling the move as “cheap publicity.”
“Some people have the habit of doing cheap publicity. One such person is Navya Haridas… Priyanka Gandhi Vadra won the elections with a margin of 4-5 lakhs,” Tiwari told media.
BJP’s Navya Haridas has filed a petition in the Kerala High Court seeking to annul Priyanka Gandhi’s election victory. Haridas alleged that Gandhi withheld critical information from voters and exerted undue influence during the campaign. The bypolls, held on November 13, were conducted after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi vacated the seat.
Reacting to the petition, Tiwari expressed confidence in its dismissal. “I have full faith that her petition will not only be rejected but a penalty will be imposed on her,” he said.
Congress MP Manickam Tagore supported Tiwari’s stance, stating that while BJP has the right to file a petition, the truth remains on their side. “BJP people have the right to do all these things. They will complain against Rahul Gandhi in Delhi and against Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Wayanad. We all know that the truth is with our side,” Tagore said.
Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla alleged that not only BJP but also communist parties questioned Gandhi’s victory. “Not only BJP but her communist companions in Delhi are also questioning her victory (in Wayanad). They (communists) have said that Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was supported by organisations like Jamaat-e-Islami, Congress was behaving like the Muslim League, and crossed all the limits of appeasement politics… Everything will be proved in the court,” Poonawalla told media.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra secured a decisive win in the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, defeating Sathyan Mokeri of the Communist Party of India (CPI) by a margin of 4,10,931 votes. Wayanad, considered a Congress stronghold, saw a triangular contest between Gandhi, BJP’s Navya Haridas, and CPI’s Sathyan Mokeri.