Ex-Premier’s Widow to Run for 2 Seats

Sonia Gandhi, widow of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, opted to seek two seats in India’s Parliament. “I have decided to contest from this constituency [Bellary] as well as north,” she said after filing her nomination papers as a Congress Party candidate in the southern state of Karnataka. She will also probably seek a seat in the Amethi district, which was once represented by her husband, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. The Bellary district is known for sending Congress Party candidates to Parliament. Even so, Gandhi will face a tough opponent, Sushma Swaraj of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Amethi district candidates have not yet been declared. If Gandhi wins both races, she would represent only one district. India’s general elections will be held in September and October.