The Congress suffered a major setback in the Madhya Pradesh Rajya Sabha elections after the nomination of its candidate, Meenakshi Natarajan, was rejected by the Returning Officer. The development has significantly altered the electoral contest for the state’s three Rajya Sabha seats and strengthened the possibility of all three BJP candidates being elected unopposed.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had objected to Natarajan’s nomination, alleging that she failed to disclose details of a pending case in a Hyderabad court in her election affidavit. BJP leaders argued that information related to the matter was available in official records and that a response had already been filed on her behalf. They also claimed there were discrepancies in the asset details provided in her nomination documents.
Advocate Sanket Gupta, representing the BJP, said Supreme Court guidelines require candidates to disclose all pending cases against them, making the omission a valid ground for rejecting the nomination.
The Congress, however, disputed the allegations, maintaining that no criminal case had been registered against Natarajan. Party leaders argued that she had merely received a court notice and was therefore under no legal obligation to mention it in her affidavit.
Reacting strongly to the decision, Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Umang Singhar accused the BJP of undermining democratic processes. He alleged that the ruling party was attempting to influence the election through pressure tactics and claimed the move reflected political insecurity.
Ahead of the polls, Congress had sent most of its MLAs to Bengaluru in a bid to keep the party united. With Natarajan’s nomination now rejected, BJP nominees Tarun Chugh, Rajneesh Agrawal and Mahesh Kewat are now likely to be elected unopposed.
