Lok Sabha polls 2024: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra may fight from Daman and Diu, says Congress UT president Ketan Patel

Congress Daman and Diu President Ketan Patel announced on Sunday that Priyanka Gandhi could potentially represent the Union Territory, as per the party's high command's request for data collection.

"Priyanka Gandhi may be a possible candidate from Daman and Diu. I welcome this proposal," Patel was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. The data will consider factors such as ground reality, voters, and past performance. Patel believes this move will benefit South Gujarat and Saurashtra, regions traditionally supportive of Congress.

"The high command has given us the responsibility of data collection. With the arrival of Priyanka ji, the entire South Gujarat which has always been with Congress and Saurashtra which is adjacent to Diu, will benefit here. In data collection, points like ground reality, voters and past performance will be seen," he explained. 

There has been uncertainty around where Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will contest from after her mother and former Congress president Sonia Gandhi said she won't fight from Raebareli.

BJP list of candidates 2024

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has released its first list of 195 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, including PM Modi from the Varanasi constituency, a seat he has held since 2014.

After the BJP announced PM Modi's candidature from Varanasi, UP Congress chief Ajay Rai said that Varanasi is a traditional Congress seat. Rai also said that people of the constituency are with the grand old party. 

Other notable names include Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, Smriti Irani and Rajeev Chandrashekhar.

The list includes 34 central and state ministers and two former Chief Ministers. Among the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, the party has announced only PM Modi's candidacy.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP-led National Democratic (NDA) won a total of 303 seats, leaving Congress trailing with 52 seats. The upcoming Lok Sabha polls are anticipated to occur in April-May this year.