Mumbai, June 11 (IANS) Leaders of the Congress and Shiv Sena-UBT on Thursday criticised the rejection of Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan’s Rajya Sabha nomination, describing the move as undemocratic and raising questions about the fairness of the electoral process.

Speaking to IANS, Shiv Sena-UBT spokesperson Anand Dubey said: “Only God knows when the Supreme Court will deliver its decisions. Many cases related to our party have also been pending for a long time. The rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination shows that this is not an election but a ‘selection’. The BJP has already decided in advance who is to be elected and who is not.”

Congress leader Sachin Pilot termed the development “very unfortunate” and questioned the grounds on which the nomination was rejected.

“As you know, the Rajya Sabha elections are underway. Just before the deadline, the nomination of our Madhya Pradesh candidate, Meenakshi Natarajan, was cancelled. It is extremely unfortunate that the nomination of a candidate from a national party, with valid credentials, was rejected without any proper reason,” he said.

Pilot further alleged that the reasons cited for the rejection were baseless.

“The claim that she concealed certain facts is completely false. There is no case against her. I regret to say that such an incident, where the nomination of an opposition candidate is cancelled, is unprecedented. It is a major conspiracy,” he added.

Congress MP Tanuj Punia also expressed concern over the development, saying it could damage the credibility of democratic institutions.

“It would be a serious blot on our democratic system if such a situation were allowed to prevail. When the court has not even accepted the pleadings and no criminal charges have been established, rejecting a nomination merely on the basis of a notice raises serious concerns. This appears to be against democratic principles,” he said.

Meanwhile, Congress has approached the Supreme Court to contest the dismissal of Natarajan’s nomination and the apex court said it will hear the matter on Friday.

This legal action follows the Returning Officer’s rejection of Natarajan’s nomination papers due to objections raised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The ruling party claimed that the Congress leader did not provide information about a legal case in Telangana in the affidavit that accompanied her nomination papers.

According to the objection filed against Natarajan’s nomination, former corporate executive A. Srilatha has petitioned the Fourth Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court, alleging that Natarajan provided political patronage to Kumbham Shivakumar Reddy, against whom Srilatha has levelled serious allegations, including molestation and death threats.

Natarajan, however, has dismissed the allegations as a “political conspiracy” and opposed Srilatha’s petition before a Hyderabad court, claiming that it was an attempt to malign her reputation.

Earlier on Wednesday, Natarajan alleged that the Returning Officers (ROs) were “compromised” and acting on the behest of the government.

–IANS

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