Surat: Mukesh Dalal of the BJP is poised to secure the Surat Lok Sabha seat without contest as all opposing candidates have withdrawn from the race, announced Gujarat BJP chief CR Paatil. Today marked the withdrawal deadline for nominations.
The Congress party's Surat candidate, Nilesh Kumbhani, faced rejection of his nomination, along with his substitute Suresh Padsala, due to alleged inconsistencies in their paperwork. The Congress termed this move as "match-fixing."
CR Paatil took to the microblogging platform X to express his joy, stating, "Surat has presented the first lotus to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I congratulate our candidate for Surat Lok Sabha seat, Mukesh Dalal, for getting elected unopposed." This was in reference to the BJP's symbol, the lotus.
Out of the eight candidates who withdrew their nominations, seven were independents, and Pyarelal Bharti represented the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).
The rejection of Kumbhani's nomination came after the district returning officer, Saurabh Parghi, identified inconsistencies in the signatures of the proposers on Sunday. Similarly, Padsala's nomination was also declared invalid.
The returning officer's scrutiny revealed that the nomination forms submitted by the Congress candidates appeared dubious. The individuals listed as proposers stated in their affidavits that they had not personally signed the forms.
Responding to the situation, Congress lawyer Babu Mangukiya stated that the party intends to approach both the High Court and the Supreme Court seeking relief.
Expressing concern over the developments in Surat, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh posted on X, "The Surat developments indicate democracy is under threat. Our elections, our democracy, Babasaheb Ambedkar's Constitution - all are under a generational threat. This is the most important election of our lifetime."
Ramesh further alleged that the BJP's apprehension regarding the dissatisfaction among micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) owners and the business community in PM Modi's "Anyay Kaal" has driven them to attempt manipulating the Surat Lok Sabha polls. He noted that the BJP has consistently won this seat since the 1984 Lok Sabha elections.