Former Congress President Sonia Gandhi registered her nomination for the Rajya Sabha election from Rajasthan on Wednesday. The party announced its candidates and chose Abhishek Manu Singhvi of Himachal Pradesh, Akhilesh Prasad Singh of Bihar and Chandrakant Handore of Maharashtra.

The announcement comes after top leaders of the Congress on Monday convened at the residence of party chief Mallikarjun Kharge to deliberate on potential candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, as per PTI.

The meeting, held at Kharge's residence, was attended by several key figures, including Congress Parliamentary Party chief Sonia Gandhi, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, and party treasurer Ajay Maken. Senior party leader Mukul Wasnik was also present to strategise on candidates for Rajya Sabha seats from various states, including Karnataka, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra, according to PTI.

Notably, the deadline for filing nominations is February 15, with the elections scheduled for February 27.

With Sonia Gandhi opting for a Rajya Sabha seat, speculation is rife that her traditional constituency, Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh, would be contested by her daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to make her Lok Sabha poll debut.

The Raebareli constituency holds particular significance for the Gandhi family, being deeply intertwined with their political legacy. Prior to Sonia Gandhi, notable figures like Firoz Gandhi (son-in-law of Jawaharlal Nehru), Indira Gandhi, Arun Nehru, and Sheila Kaul (wife of Kamala Nehru's brother) have contested and won from this seat, underscoring its familial and historical importance within the Congress party.