Kalpetta: Congress president Rahul Gandhi might file his nomination papers for the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat on April 4, the last date of submission, party sources said.
According to them, he may arrive in Wayanad a day earlier. AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal, who is responsible for overseeing the arrangements for Rahul’s visit, will convene a meeting of central and state leaders to discuss the preparations to be made.
A team of Special Protection Group (SPG) personnel will reach here on Monday to review the security measures in place for his visit.
It was learnt that the central leaders of the party are leaving no stone unturned to create a carnival-like atmosphere in Wayanad during the party chief’s maiden visit to the district.
Congress launches counter-campaign
Meanwhile, the BJP has sharpened its attack on Rahul for deciding to contest from Wayanad on his second seat, claiming that he fled from Amethi to escape accountability. The saffron party also alleges that Rahul’s move smacks of the Congress’s minority appeasement policy.
Questioning the Congress’s commitment to fight the BJP, the left parties are reportedly considering to form a non-Congress ‘Third Front' with regional parties.
The Congress has launched a counter-campaign claiming that Rahul chose to contest from Wayanad because South India holds a special place in his heart and the idea was to send a message to Southern States that the party respects their culture, language and traditions.
They party believes that Rahul’s candidacy in Wayanad, a backward district with a high concentration of tribal population, would boost his image of being a leader who cares about the poor and the marginalised. The Congress will also intensify its campaign that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has divided India into two segments - one that belongs to the rich and the affluent, and another that belongs to the poor and the exploited.
Rahul will have less than 20 days for electioneering in Wayanad. In the meantime, he will have to attend campaigns in states that will go to polls in the first two phases. Also, he will have to find time to file his nomination paper in Amethi and catch up with his rivals on the campaigning front. So it is unclear how many days he will be camping in Wayanad to lead the campaign.
The Congress’s state leadership will have to go all out if Rahul has to win with huge majority in Wayanad, given that there is limited time.
Police on their toes
In the wake of Rahul Gandhi’s candidature, security arrangements will be beefed up threefold in Wayanad. As there were several incidents of late confirming the presence of the Maoists in villages on the fringes of forest areas in the district, the state would seek more Central forces to strengthen the hands of the local police force. The DGP has instructed the state anti-terrorism squad (ATS) and the Wayanad police chief to prepare an emergency report on the security scenario in the district.
Obviously, Rahul’s decision to contest from Wayanad has put the state police force in a tight spot. Last month, the SPG had denied permission for him to visit CRPF martyr Vasanthakumar's house in Pookode in the light of Maoists’ presence in the region. The militant group has also threatened to retaliate for the alleged encounter killing of its activist C P Jaleel by the police in Vythiri recently. All precautionary measures will be taken to extend the security and thwart any possible attack,” officials said, adding that the local police would collect the details of his itinerary and make necessary arrangements accordingly.
Security to be beefed up
Rahul is expected to visit Wayanad at least five times ahead of the elections. Apart from the commandos of Kerala police’s Thunderbolts and the anti-terrorism squad, central forced will also be deployed in areas where Rahul is scheduled to visit. If he decides to be present here on the day of election, it will create more headaches for the police as there are about 30 polling booths in Wayanad that have been identified as vulnerable to Maoist attack.
In consultation with the Election Commission, special security arrangements will be drawn up for these critical and sensitive zones, officials disclosed.
Superintendent of police, Wayanad, and SP Debesh Kumar Behera, who is in charge of the state anti-terrorism squad, have been entrusted with the task of overseeing the security measures.
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