The Union government’s decision to ask Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to vacate her Lodhi Road bungalow in New Delhi has “speeded” the process of the Congress general secretary shifting her base to Lucknow, party sources said on Thursday.
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A senior leader told The Hindu that Ms. Vadra would be “spending more time” in Lucknow as the party’s in-charge for Uttar Pradesh, but declined to comment on reports of her “permanently shifting base”. Uttar Pradesh Congress leaders, however, insisted that the move was planned before the Centre’s notice, but the COVID-19 pandemic halted it. They said the vacant house of former Union Minister and Indira Gandhi’s maternal aunt, late Sheila Kaul, in Lucknow was being readied. “ Priyankaji is already spending time in Uttar Pradesh, but now she will be spending more time as the [Assembly] election is not too far away,” the senior leader said.
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At an official briefing, senior spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi avoided a direct answer, but accused the Centre of resorting to “trickery” to take away her bungalow. Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal said the decision reflected the government’s “deep hatred for the Nehru-Gandhi family”. “The path for a national revival of the @INCIndia is via Uttar Pradesh,” Karti Chidambaram, MP, tweeted.
