BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi slammed Congress after its Rajya Sabha candidate Meenakshi Natarajan's nomination was rejected in MP. He alleged she hid a pending case. Congress met the EC, terming the rejection a 'perverse order' and legally unsound.
BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi on Wednesday slammed the Congress's opposition to the rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan's nomination for the Rajya Sabha polls from Madhya Pradesh, asserting that the ongoing political discourse initiated by the Congress following the rejection of its candidate's nomination exposes the party's intentions to the nation.
"The kind of politics the Congress party is engaging in following the rejection of its Rajya Sabha candidate's nomination in Madhya Pradesh truly exposes the party's intentions and its internal state of affairs to the nation," said Sudhanshu Trivedi.
BJP alleges non-disclosure of pending case
Highlighting the grounds for the rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan's Rajya Sabha nomination, the BJP MP alleged that the Congress candidate had failed to disclose a pending case against her in a Telangana court.
Elaborating on the matter, the MP stated that the case originated from a complaint filed by a female Congress worker in Telangana against a state-level party leader, alleging exploitation and inappropriate behaviour. According to the BJP MP, the complainant had also named Natarajan, who was the leader in charge of the state unit at the time, as a party to the case. Thus, emphasising the legal requirement for transparency, the MP asserted that under existing electoral norms, every candidate is required to disclose information regarding all pending cases in their nomination affidavit. "It is quite clear that a case was pending against the Congress candidate, Meenakshi Natarajan, in a Telangana court... It was a case filed by a female Congress worker from Telangana against a Congress leader from the same state, alleging exploitation and inappropriate behaviour; in her complaint, she had also named the Congress candidate--who was the leader in charge--in connection with the matter... From a legal standpoint, every candidate is required to disclose information regarding any case pending against them. Congress have a government in Telangana, why didn't they provide a written statement confirming that this case has been closed?... Why didn't the Congress candidate or the Congress party field a backup candidate?... Did the Congress--foreseeing inevitable defeat--deliberately filled out the form in such a way that their candidacy would be rejected..." added Trivedi.
Sudhanshu Trivedi's remarks came after the nomination of Congress Rajya Sabha candidate Meenakshi Natarajan from Madhya Pradesh was rejected over allegations of concealing information regarding a pending case in her affidavit. The cancellation, which has sparked significant political controversy, led Natarajan to condemn the decision as "seat chori" (theft of a seat) and a "muzzling of democracy.
Congress approaches Election Commission, contests rejection
Following the rejection, a delegation of senior Congress leaders, including KC Venugopal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Jairam Ramesh, Randeep Singh Surjewala, Vivek Tankha, Digvijaya Singh and Bhupesh Baghel, met Election Commission officials seeking intervention in the matter.
Addressing the media after the meeting, Congress MP and senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi strongly criticised the Returning Officer's (RO) decision to reject Natarajan's nomination, describing it as legally unsustainable. "We have told them, and we have demonstrated, according to us, beyond doubt and beyond any matter of controversy, that the RO has passed a perverse order. An order akin to writing 2+2=7, not 4," Singhvi said. He argued that the rejection was based on an incorrect interpretation of Section 33A of the Representation of the People Act, which requires candidates to disclose only those criminal cases where charges have been formally framed by a court and where the alleged offence carries a punishment of more than two years. According to Singhvi, the matter cited against Natarajan had not even reached the stage of cognisance, making the basis for rejection legally untenable.
Natarajan awaits EC response, expresses faith in democracy
However, the Congress candidate Meenakshi Natarajan said she continues to have faith in India's constitutional institutions and democratic processes, said the party had placed its arguments before the poll panel and was now awaiting its response. "We still have full hope in constitutional institutions, and that's why we are fighting this battle. The Election Commission has heard our case today, and now we are waiting. We are in our fight. We still believe, somewhere or the other, that some form of democratic integrity remains in a democracy," Natarajan said.
"Our senior lawyers have presented their case on our behalf, and we are fighting our battle," she said. (ANI)
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)