Chess player Rahul makes high-stakes move in LS polls, shifts to Rae Bareli

Referring to Rahul Gandhi describing himself as the best chess player among Indian politicians, the Congress on Friday (May 3) said his decision to contest from Rae Bareli instead of his home ground Amethi has befuddles the BJP and its supporters.

“He is an experienced player of politics and chess. The party leadership takes its decisions after much discussion, and as part of a larger strategy. This single decision has befuddled the BJP, its supporters, and its sycophants," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on the much-anticipated decision.

"The BJP's self-proclaimed Chanakya, who used to talk about 'paramparagat seat' is now not sure how to respond," he said.

Gandhi obviously hopes that the move will checkmate opponents but the BJP sees it as a cowardly retreat from the battleground.

I’m best in chess

The chess reference by Ramesh comes days after the Congress put out a video of Gandhi talking about his interest in the board game and its similarities with politics. In the video, when Gandhi is asked who is the best chess player among Indian politicians, he said, "Me".

Gandhi filed his papers from Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareli constituency in the afternoon, barely an hour before nominations closed for the Lok Sabha seat on Friday.

He was accompanied by Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as he filed his papers around 2 pm.

Irani snatches Amethi

Gandhi had made his poll debut from Amethi in 2004 and saw relative smooth sailing in the first 10 years with the UPA being in power, while the last 10 years have been challenging.

He won the 2014 polls against the BJP's Smriti Irani by over a lakh votes, but she had run a spirited campaign and made inroads into the Congress citadel of Amethi.

She finally breached the fortress in 2019, beating the Gandhi family scion by over 55,000 votes. However, Gandhi's 'Plan B' seemed to have worked as he contested the polls from two constituencies and won from Kerala's Wayanad, ensuring that his stint in Parliament continued.

A reluctant politician

Some of the earlier electoral gambles of Gandhi such as pitching the 2019 polls campaign of the Congress on the Rafale issue have not paid off, but Gandhi has always stuck to his convictions and maintained his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, including on the Adani issue.

He has been at the receiving end of criticism from various quarters and often been dubbed a "reluctant politician" or "part-time politician", but he has remained unfazed by such criticism.

At a press briefing in Ghaziabad a couple of weeks ago, Gandhi had taken a swipe at the media for dubbing him a "non-serious" politician. He had cited his involvement with the MGNREGA scheme, the Land Acquisition Bill, the Bhatta Parsaul movement, Niyamgiri Hills matter, and had said for the media all this was "non-serious while talking about Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai and Virat Kohli was serious".

Political debut from Amethi

In 2004, Gandhi announced his entry into Indian politics, contesting his first election from Amethi, the same seat that was represented by his mother Sonia Gandhi (1999–2004) and his late father Rajiv Gandhi between 1981–91.

Rahul Gandhi won by an overwhelming margin of almost 3 lakh votes. He again won in 2009, but his margin was reduced in 2014 and was defeated by Irani in 2019. He had been criticised for not spending enough time in the constituency, allowing the BJP to make inroads into the Congress fortress.

Gandhi was appointed vice president of the Congress in 2013 and took over the reins of the party on December 16, 2017. He stepped down as its president in May 2019 after the drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls.

Since then, he has taken out to yatras – a cross country Kanyakumari to Kashmir march on foot and a hybrid Manipur to Mumbai yatra, initiatives which were hailed by Congress leaders for galvanising cadres and enthusing supporters.

Makes social justice a mission

Gandhi had recently said it is now his life mission to ensure justice for the SCs, STs, OBCs and the deprived people.

He has pitched the Congress campaign for the 2024 Lok Sabha on five Nyays – Yuva Nyay, Nari Nyay, Kisan Nyay, Shramik Nyay and Hissedari Nyay.

Born on June 19, 1970 to Rajiv and Sonia Gandhi, he is the elder of the two siblings and spent his formative years in New Delhi, studying at St. Columba's School and then went on to study at the Doon School in Dehradun.

His father Rajiv Gandhi then entered politics and became prime minister after the assassination of Rahul's grandmother and then prime minister Indira Gandhi.

Due to constant security threats, Rahul and his sister Priyanka were home-schooled.

From Harvard to Trinity

A year after attending St. Stephen's College, University of Delhi, for his undergraduate studies, he moved to the US to attend Harvard University. Following the assassination of his father and the security concerns that surfaced, Rahul Gandhi shifted to Rollins College in Florida. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1994.

Thereafter, he went on to pursue and complete his M Phil in Development Studies from the University of Cambridge (Trinity College) in 1995.

Upon graduation, Rahul started his professional journey at the Monitor Group, a management consulting firm in London. He later returned to India and eventually joined politics.

Gandhi is a certified scuba diver and is known for his fitness. He also holds a black belt in Aikido, a Japanese martial art.

(With agency inputs)