Nilesh Kumbhani 'Missing' After His Nomination as Congress Candidate Got Rejected Paving Way for Mukesh Dalal's Victory in Surat; May Join BJP
This occurred a day after Mukesh Dalal of the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) was proclaimed the winner from the BJP stronghold following the withdrawal of all opposition contenders.
Gandhinagar, April 23: Following the Bharatiya Janta Party’s (BJP) unprecedented victory in the Surat Lok Sabha Elections 2024 in Gujarat, extraordinary events transpired. According to the local media, Nilesh Kumbhani, the Surat Congress leader, is missing and cannot be contacted over phone. His candidature as a candidate for Lok Sabha Elections 2024 was denied due to purported irregularities.
This occurs a day after Mukesh Dalal of the BJP was proclaimed the winner from the BJP stronghold following the withdrawal of all opposition contenders. Surat Lok Sabha Election 2024: BJP Claims First Victory in LS Polls As Candidate Mukesh Dalal Elected Unopposed After Others Withdraw From Fray (Watch Video).
"Janata ka gaddar (people's traitor)" posters were shown by Congress workers to demonstrate outside Kumbhani's home amid rumours that the latter could join the BJP. Citing "wrong and undue influence" by the ruling BJP in Gujarat, the Congress has contacted the Election Commission and requested a resumption of the voting process. After meeting with the Election Commissioners on Monday, April 22, party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi told reporters, "We have therefore requested that the Election Commission postpone the Surat election and redo the election shorty to send a clear message that you cannot take advantage of this kind of wrong undue influence." Surat Lok Sabha Election 2024: Setback for Congress As Returning Officer Disqualifies Party's Candidate Nilesh Kumbhani Nomination; Clear Path for BJP.
According to Singhvi, four people nominated Kumbhani, a candidate for the Congress, in Surat, "but, suddenly all four stood up and denied their signatures." There is no coincidence here. When the candidate reappears after going absent for several hours, we discover that every other contender has withdrawn their candidatures and the returning officer has rejected his candidature, he added.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 23, 2024 02:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).