National: Navya Haridas, National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate for the Wayanad Lok Sabha polls, on Sunday targeted the Gandhi family, saying they consider the hill constituency as a mere "choice" or "second" seat". She claimed the people of the Wayanad seat have realised this now.

Haridas, while addressing reporters in Kozhikode, said, as far as India is concerned, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is not a new face, but for Wayanad, she is a newcomer.

Who is Navya Haridas?

Haridas is a two-time councillor in the Kozhikode Corporation. A techie-turned-politician, Haridas, further criticised the Congress party for giving seats to Gandhi family members. She said what the voters of Wayanad want is a leader who stands up for them and resolves their problems. Haridas serves as the parliamentary party leader for the BJP in the Corporation. She is also the state general secretary of the Mahila Morcha, according to party sources.

"Priyanka is coming as a representative of the Gandhi family who had failed to raise the issues of Wayanad in the Parliament," she alleged.

She said the people of Wayanad had given a mandate to Rahul Gandhi with the belief that he would be with them for the next five years. But when he got a chance to keep Raebareli, the Gandhi scion had abandoned the Wayanad constituency.

So, people of Wayanad have now realised that the constituency is considered just as a "second seat" or "choice" (by the Gandhi family), she alleged.

As the BJP released its candidate list for the upcoming by-elections in various states on Saturday, Haridas, a young woman leader in the saffron party, was named as the party's nominee for this crucial seat.

The by-election for the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat became necessary after Rahul Gandhi, who won the Lok Sabha polls from there and the Rae Bareli constituency decided to vacate it.