Just days before the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP has already recorded a victory without contest on the Surat Lok Sabha seat. With the Congress candidates' nomination cancelled, the remaining 8 candidates have withdrawn their candidacies. This leaves BJP candidate Mukesh Dalal with an uncontested win. The Electoral Commission has already issued him a victory certificate. This marks the first time a BJP parliamentarian is elected without opposition in a Lok Sabha election. The Congress has labelled this incident as match-fixing.
Specifically, voting for all 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat is due in the third phase on May 7th. The deadline for filing nominations was April 19th, and the withdrawal date was April 22nd. A total of 11 candidates, including those from the Congress and BJP, had filed their papers from the Surat Lok Sabha seat. BJP's Mukesh Dalal, Congress's Nilesh Kumbhani, BSP's Pyarelal Bharti, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Party's Abdul Hamid Khan, Global Republican Party's Jayesh Mewada, and the People's Party's Sohel Khan nominated themselves. Other independents like Ajit Singh Umat, Kishor Dayani, Rameshbhai Baraiya, and Bharat Prajapati also entered the fray. Congress also had an alternate candidate in Suresh Padsala, whose nomination was subsequently rejected due to proposer issues.
Following a complaint by the BJP, the Congress candidate's papers were rejected based on proposer discrepancies. This led to the other 8 candidates also retracting their nominations. Speculation began immediately after Nilesh Kumbhani's nomination was dismissed that the remaining candidates would withdraw. The focus was on the BSP candidate Pyarelal Bharti, but like the others, he withdrew his nomination, ensuring a straight win for the BJP in this seat, which has been under BJP's control since 1989. Former Prime Minister Morarji Desai had earlier represented this constituency for 5 terms.
How the Congress Candidacy was Dismissed
Note that the Congress and the AAP INDIA alliance are contesting the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat. Surat had Congress's Nilesh Kumbhani as the alliance candidate. However, he was unable to present even one of his three proposers before the electoral officer, leading to the cancellation of his nomination. The BJP had raised flags about Nilesh Kumbhani's proposer signatures on his form. The proposers, who were reportedly his brother-in-law, nephew, and a partner, claimed before the electoral officer on Sunday that the signatures on Kumbhani's form were not theirs, leading to their sudden disappearance and the quashing of the Congress candidate's nomination.
Moreover, the nomination of Suresh Padsala, Congress's alternate candidate from Surat, was also dismissed. Returning Officer Saurabh Pardhi stated that the nominee forms ' signatures of three proposers for both Kumbhani and Padsala were found to be incorrect. This resulted in the rejection of both candidates' nominations. On this, Congress lawyer Babu Mangukia stated, "The nomination forms of Nilesh Kumbhani and Suresh Padsala were dismissed because four proposers claimed the signatures on the form were not theirs."
Why did Congress Have an Alternate Candidate?
Typically, if the chief candidate's candidacy is dismissed after examination by election officials or if the candidate passes away, the alternate candidate becomes the party's main face. Most major political parties field a backup option or covering candidate. This candidacy only lasts until the final date for withdrawing nominations. Once the main candidate's nomination is approved by the election office, the affidavit for the alternate is declared invalid. Some parties also field such candidates as independents in battleground constituencies.
Congress Alleges Match Fixing
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has termed this incident as match-fixing, indicating the erosion of democratic values. He elaborated on the timeline, criticizing the move as an attempt to 'match-fix' the Surat Lok Sabha constituency, which BJP has consistently won since the 1984 Lok Sabha elections. He stressed the importance of this as a crucial election in our lifetimes, highlighting the threat to our elections, democracy, and the Constitution of Babasaheb Ambedkar.
