The Congress on Tuesday alleged discrepancies in the nomination papers of Parimal Nathwani, the BJP-backed Independent nominee for the Rajya Sabha polls in Jharkhand, and lodged a complaint with the returning officer.
Nathwani, the Rajya Sabha MP from Andhra Pradesh, filed his nomination papers for one of the two Rajya Sabha seats in Jharkhand on Monday, along with the JMM candidate Baidyanath Ram and Congress nominee Pranav Jha.
The returning officer put his nomination on hold and gave him a deadline of 11 am on Wednesday to resolve the objections, a BJP office-bearer said.
Filing of nominations began on June 1 and concluded on Monday. Scrutiny of the nomination papers was held on Tuesday, during which the candidatures of JMM and Congress nominees were found to be valid, an official said.
“There were many discrepancies in the nomination papers (of Nathwani), including an error in his name. As a proposer for our candidate Pranav Jha, I lodged a complaint with the returning officer before the scrutiny exercise,” Congress MLA Naman Bixal Kongari told PTI.
Despite repeated efforts, returning officer Ranjit Kumar could not be contacted for comments on the matter.
However, a purported letter from the Jharkhand assembly secretariat to the Independent candidate stated that a complaint raising objections to his nomination paper was filed, and his nomination was put on hold until 11 am on Wednesday.
“Discrepancy has been reported in the nomination paper of Parimal Nathwani, the BJP-supported candidate in the Jharkhand Rajya Sabha election. A hearing is underway on the complaint,” Congress observer for Rajya Sabha polls in Jharkhand, Bhupesh Baghel, posted on X.
Baghel further said, “It remains to be seen whether this BJP-backed candidate will remain in the fray solely because they have secured the protective shield of the BJP, or if the same rules will apply to them as well, and unethical conduct will face defeat.”
A close aide of Nathwani, however, claimed the objections that had been raised were resolved.
The last date for withdrawal of nomination is June 11, while the polling will be held on June 18.
To ensure victory, a candidate is required to secure a minimum of 28 first-preference votes.
In the Jharkhand Assembly, the INDIA bloc has 56 members, comprising 34 from the JMM, 16 from the Congress, four from the RJD and two from CPI(ML) Liberation.
The NDA has 24 MLAs — 21 from the BJP and one each from the LJP (Ram Vilas), AJSU Party and the JD(U). Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha has one MLA.
