Cong candidate's RS polls nomination rejected; she calls it 'dictatorship’

In a significant development in the election for three Rajya Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh, the Returning Officer (RO) on Tuesday rejected the nomination of Congress candidate Meenakshi Natarajan following objections from the BJP alleging that she failed to disclose details of a case in her affidavit.

The complaint, filed by BJP candidate Mahesh Kewat and supported by BJP state general secretary Rahul Kothari, claimed that Natarajan had omitted information about a case filed against her in Telangana.

RO and Vidhan Sabha principal secretary Arvind Sharma subsequently rejected her nomination, stating that she was fully aware of the complaint pending before a Hyderabad court but had not mentioned it in her affidavit. The order noted that Natarajan had responded to the complaint in October 2025, indicating prior knowledge of the matter and rendering her Form 26 affidavit incomplete, The New Indian Express reported.

The case relates to a private complaint filed by a former corporator in September 2025, following which a Hyderabad court issued her a notice under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).

Reacting to the decision, Natarajan alleged that the BJP challenged her nomination after realising that the Congress remained united in Madhya Pradesh and that the ruling party lacked sufficient numbers to secure its third candidate's victory. She claimed that the RO ignored the arguments presented by the Congress legal team and described the rejection as an attack on democracy, federalism and the multi-party system.

The rejection has effectively cleared the way for the unopposed election of BJP candidate Kewat to the third Rajya Sabha seat, alongside BJP nominees Tarun Chugh and Rajneesh Agrawal.

Congress legal expert Ajay Gupta termed the order unconstitutional and illegal, arguing that no FIR or criminal case had been registered against Natarajan. He alleged that the RO's decision failed to address the Congress's objections and amounted to the "theft" of a Rajya Sabha seat. Gupta also said the timing of the order left the party with little opportunity to seek judicial relief, as both the Madhya Pradesh High Court and the Supreme Court are on vacation.

Later in the evening, senior Congress leaders attempted to submit a petition to the Election Commission of India in New Delhi but were denied entry due to the absence of prior permission. Leaders including Jairam Ramesh, K. C. Venugopal, Sachin Pilot and Bhupesh Baghel staged a protest outside the EC office. The poll body later informed the party that its representatives would be heard on Wednesday.

In a post on X, Venugopal alleged that the rejection of Natarajan's nomination was a deliberate attempt by the BJP to undermine the democratic process. "Rejecting Smt.Meenakshi Natarajan ji's nomination to the Rajya Sabha is a blatant attempt by the BJP to destroy the democratic process in a clandestine manner. The allegation of any error or non-disclosure in her nomination is complete humbug and a desperate attempt to snatch a seat from the INC," Venugopal said.

"They stooped so low as to reject her nomination when they realised that their dirty tricks to compromise our INC MLAs is going to fail. This shows the BJP's hollow commitment to the Constitution and democracy. At every step of the way, they are hell-bent on Vote Chori -- one way or another," the Congress leader said.

"We will not take this daylight robbery of democracy lying down, and will fight this legally as well as politically on the streets tooth-and-nail," he added.

Welcoming the RO's decision, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav alleged that the Congress may have intentionally omitted details of the case from the affidavit out of concern about its electoral prospects. He also compared the episode to the 2024 Lok Sabha election in Indore, where Congress candidate Akshay Kanti Bam withdrew from the contest after filing his nomination papers.