Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi will not be campaigning for bye-elections in Uttar Pradesh scheduled on September 13. Party sources, however, downplayed it saying the Congress President, by convention, never campaigns in by-polls.

The seats going for elections include Noida, Lucknow East, Saharanpur Nagar, Bijnore, Thakurdwara, Nighasan, Hamirpur, Charkhan, Sirathu, Balha, Rohaniya and Sirathu in Uttar Pradesh.

The process of filing nominations has already started and the last date is August 27.

Rahul had once campaigned in a Lok Sabha by-poll in favour of party candidate Raj Babbar in 2009, where he was fielded against Dimple Yadav, the daughter-in-law of SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav. Gandhi, was, however not the party Vice President then.