BHOPAL: Congress candidate Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination for the June 18 Rajya Sabha polls in MP was rejected Tuesday after scrutiny, turning election arithmetic on its head as BJP closed in on winning all three seats unopposed. Returning officer A P Singh rejected the nomination after BJP objected that Natarajan failed to disclose details of a pending case in Telangana.Congress branded the move “illegal” and alleged BJP had engineered a “constitutional conspiracy” to grab a third RS seat despite lacking numbers. Under election law, EC cannot overturn a returning officer’s decision during scrutiny.The stakes had already been running high after BJP sprang a surprise by fielding Mahesh Kewat as a third candidate. BJP, with 164 MLAs in the 230-member assembly, is comfortably placed to bag two seats. A candidate needs 58 votes to win, leaving Kewat dependent on surplus votes, cross-voting or abstentions.
Natarajan was given a chance to furnish missing details, she didn’t do so: Officials
Natarajan said, “BJP fielded a third candidate without adequate votes and we knew hurdles would be created.” She said, “First, they are stealing votes through SIR, now they are stealing seats. We will fight this battle through every democratic and constitutional forum available.”Unless Congress secures urgent relief from EC or Supreme Court, the contest now effectively stands reduced to three BJP candidates for three vacancies — setting the stage for an unopposed sweep in MP.Officials said that Meenakshi Natarajan was given an opportunity to furnish missing details but failed to do so, prompting rejection through a reasoned order.Congress disputed that interpretation. “The matter relates to BNS Section 223 concerning intentional disobedience of a lawful order by a public servant. It is not a criminal case in the conventional sense,” Congress legal cell representative Ajay Gupta said. “There was no requirement to disclose it under prescribed norms.”Gupta said the party would challenge the rejection before appropriate legal forums, including EC and SC.Congress fumes as Natarajan’s RS nomination nixed, BJP close to winning all 3 in MPBJP countered that RO had merely followed law and SC guidelines on disclosure of pending criminal matters. “Apart from an FIR, if a court summons has been issued in a criminal matter, declaration is compulsory,” BJP legal cell member Sanket Gupta said. “She can’t claim ignorance because she herself responded to the notice issued by a Hyderabad court.”