Congress to Approach Supreme Court After Meenakshi Natarajan's Nomination Rejected

Political tensions in Madhya Pradesh have escalated over the Rajya Sabha elections. Congress's candidate Meenakshi Natarajan's nomination was rejected during scrutiny on June 9 by Returning Officer Arvind Sharma. The rejection was based on objections raised by BJP candidate Mahesh Kewat and party leaders, who alleged that Natarajan failed to disclose a pending legal matter in Telangana in her affidavit.

The BJP argued that Natarajan's affidavit omitted details of a private complaint in a Telangana court, which had issued a show-cause notice. According to BJP, this violated Supreme Court guidelines requiring disclosure of all pending cases. Congress, however, contended that the matter was not a criminal case but merely a notice, and thus did not need to be included in the affidavit. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi argued that the Returning Officer's decision was unlawful.

Congress had approached the Election Commission seeking to overturn the Returning Officer's decision, but no response has been received so far. With today being the last day for withdrawal of nominations, Congress is preparing to take the matter to the Supreme Court. If no immediate relief is granted, BJP's three candidates are likely to be declared elected unopposed.

A meeting has been called at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) headquarters in Delhi to discuss the situation. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, state Congress presidents, and party in-charges are expected to attend.

Key Points

• Meenakshi Natarajan's Rajya Sabha nomination was rejected on June 9.
• BJP alleged she failed to disclose a pending legal matter in her affidavit.
• Congress claims the matter is not a criminal case and challenges the rejection.
• Congress plans to move the Supreme Court after no response from the Election Commission.
• BJP's three candidates may win unopposed if no relief is granted today.