Nomination of Congress’ Surat candidate rejected as proposers claim ‘not signed’

The nomination of the Congress’ Lok Sabha candidate from Gujarat’s Surat, Nilesh Kumbhani, was rejected on Sunday after the district returning officer prima facie found discrepancies in the signatures of the proposers. The nomination of the party’s substitute candidate for the seat, Suresh Padsala, was also rejected, leaving the party with no candidate in the city.

In his order, Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said the four nomination forms submitted by Kumbhani and Padsala were rejected after prima facie, discrepancies were found in the signatures of the proposers, and they did not appear genuine. The proposers, in their affidavits, said that they had not signed the forms themselves, said the order.

On Saturday, Dinesh Jodhani, the election agent of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Mukesh Dalal, raised objections to the nomination forms. As a result, the returning officer allowed the Congress candidate time until Sunday morning to come forward and present his case.

Babu Mangukiya, the lawyer representing the Congress party, said, “The nomination forms of Dinesh Kumbhani and Suresh Padsala were rejected because four proposers claimed that the signatures on the forms were not theirs.”

The returning officer decided to reject the nomination forms after reviewing affidavits from the proposers and other evidence. They ensured the proposers’ identities were verified and they weren’t under duress, as per the order. Additionally, video footage requested by the Congress candidate’s lawyer failed to show the presence of the signatories, as mentioned in the order.

Gujarat Congress chief Shaktisinh Gohil claimed that the rejection of the party’s candidate’s nomination form for the Surat Lok Sabha constituency was orchestrated by the BJP. He said that the BJP is feeling threatened by the prospect of defeat in the elections.

Gohil said that the Congress plans to contest the Returning Officer’s decision regarding Kumbhani’s nomination form by filing a petition before the Gujarat high court.