He has been 'Pappu'ised since the run up to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and has borne the tag of "Shehzada" of the Nehru - Gandhi family for more than a decade now. His transition from the chocolated face wannabe politician to the grey bearded leader challenging a white bearded self proclaimed "King" gained momentum in the run up to the Lok Sabha Elections 2024. The results of the transition and the challenge are there for everyone to see. The BJP is the biggest party in the country with its cadre and financial muscle. But the I.N.D.I.A bloc, forged by the Congress, has raised the bar for BJP in terms of what they need to do, in order to continue to stay the single largest and powerful party in India.

Rahul Gandhi has won both his contested seats, that of Rae Bareili in Uttar Pradesh and Wayanad in Kerala. An appreciable task, one because one seat is in the heart of the Hindi belt and the other way down, in the southern tip of India. This show that Rahul has made his presence and stature as a polished and committed politician felt across the length and breadth of India. Further, it is not that he has just barely managed to win in both these constituencies. The margin (3.9 lakh) that Rahul has won with in the North Indian seat of Rae Bareil, is second highest in Uttar Pradesh. He got 6,87,649 ot 66.2% votes. His victory in the South Indian constituency of Wayanad, by a huge margin of 3.6 lakh votes, securing 6,47,445 or 59.7% votes, is the highest in Kerala. Interestingly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi secured 54.2% votes in his victory over Ajay Rai of the INC in Varanasi.

Sonia Gandhi had retained the Rae Bareili since 2004 and after winning in 2019, opted out of Lok Sabha 2024. She transitioned to Rajya Sabha, following which, Rahul Gandhi replaced her as the Congress candidate from Rae Bareili. Rahul was contesting from Amethi all through, but lost the 2019 elections to Smriti Irani. He retained his seat in Wayanad, allowing him to keep his space in the Lok Sabha.  Smriti Irani, could not maintain her hold over Amethi and lost her seat to Kishori Lal of the Congress by a margin of 1.67 lakh.

The Congress leader is yet to reveal which seat he will represent in the Lok Sabha 2024, and the Congress will want to retain both seats. At a press conference called by the top brass of the Congress earlier in the evening on 4 June, Rahul Gandhi thanked the voters of Rae Bareili and Wayanad for the trust shown by them in the Congress and the I.N.D.I.A bloc. Wayanad witnessed a 73.57% voting among the top 6 in the 20 Parliamentary constituencies (PC) in Kerala and Rae Bareili saw a voter turnout of 58.12%, very near to the median voting percentage of 56.58% for Uttar Pradesh, the state with the highest - 80 Parliamentary Constituencies.

Rahul's diligent efforts to connect with the common man over the last many years and specially after the nearly 10,000km consolidated distances across two Yatras, "Bharat Jodo" and "Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra" have borne fruit, as reflected by the results of the Lok Sabha 2024 results, both for the identity of the Indian National Congress as well as the I.N.D.I.A bloc. His messages of saving the constitution resonated with his followers. His honest field efforts representing a civilised demeanor of Indian politics. Further, voters have been put off by the destructive and communal politics of the BJP as well as the recent unparliamentary language used by their leaders. This has created the chinks in the armor of India's largest party and will hopefully help the oldest political party of India make inroads and regain their lost stature - of the party that has made India what it is today, the world's leading democracy, by example. The difference in the campaigning style in the midst of intimidation and the Godi media frenzy are a reflection of Rahul's growth as a civilised poitician. Rahul Gandhi has come of age...finally.