Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan has moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court by filing an election petition against the rejection of her nomination papers in the recent Rajya Sabha elections from Madhya Pradesh. The dispute matters because it concerns the legal threshold for nomination scrutiny and the proper forum for challenging an electoral rejection after polling-related proceedings have started.
What happened
The petition challenges the decision of the Returning Officer to reject Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination in last month’s Rajya Sabha elections. According to the petition, the Returning Officer rejected the nomination on the ground that Ms. Natarajan had concealed information that was legally required in the affidavit filed with the nomination papers.
The petition also argues that a complaint pending before a Telangana court was not a criminal case that required disclosure in the nomination affidavit. The issue had been raised before the Returning Officer by Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Mahesh Kewat.
Background and earlier position
Three Rajya Sabha seats from Madhya Pradesh were filled in elections held in June. The Congress could have won one seat, but after the rejection of Ms. Natarajan’s nomination, all three seats went to Bharatiya Janata Party candidates Tarun Chugh, Rajneesh Agrawal, and Mahesh Kewat.