Rahul GandhiFrom infopedia the free encyclopedia

Entry into politics (2004–2013)

In 2004 Rahul Gandhi contested and won his father's former seat of Amethi, Uttar Pradesh. He held the seat in 2009 and 2014. In 2007 he became general secretary in charge of the Indian Youth Congress and the NSUI, and he was made Congress vice-president in 2013.

Congress president (2017–2019)

He led the Congress campaigns in the 2014 and 2019 general elections, in which the party won only 44 and 52 seats. He became party president in December 2017 and resigned after the 2019 defeat. In 2019 he lost Amethi to Smriti Irani but won Wayanad in Kerala.

Disqualification and restoration (2023)

In March 2023 a Surat court convicted him of criminal defamation over a 2019 remark about the "Modi" surname and sentenced him to two years. He was then disqualified from the Lok Sabha. In August 2023 the Supreme Court stayed the conviction, and his membership was restored.

Bharat Jodo Yatra and Nyay Yatra

• Bharat Jodo Yatra (7 September 2022 – 30 January 2023): a march of roughly 4,000 km on foot from Kanyakumari to Srinagar.
• Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra (January–March 2024): an east-to-west journey from Manipur to Mumbai, largely by bus.

Leader of the Opposition (2024–present)

In the 2024 general election Congress won 99 seats, and Gandhi won both Rae Bareli and Wayanad. He kept Rae Bareli, and his sister Priyanka later won the Wayanad by-election. In June 2024 he became Leader of the Opposition in the 18th Lok Sabha.

"Vote chori" campaign (2025–2026)

From August 2025 he accused the Election Commission of irregularities in voter rolls, which he called "vote chori" (vote theft). He led a roughly 1,300 km Voter Adhikar Yatra across Bihar from 17 August 2025, against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar rejected the allegations and asked him to submit a sworn affidavit or apologise.

In the November 2025 Bihar election the NDA won 202 of 243 seats, and Congress won 6 of the 61 seats it contested. In the May 2026 assembly elections the Congress-led UDF won Kerala, while the BJP won West Bengal and retained Assam. In March 2026 opposition parties led by the Trinamool Congress submitted an impeachment notice against the CEC. In October 2026 Gandhi was briefly detained by Delhi Police several times during INDIA bloc protests demanding the CEC's resignation.