- Meenakshi Natarajan's Rajya Sabha nomination was rejected over a pending Telangana court case
- BJP claimed internal Congress sabotage behind the 'leak' of the documents against Natarajan
- Telangana BJP shared case documents with Madhya Pradesh BJP for legal challenge
In a dramatic twist that has turned the Madhya Pradesh Rajya Sabha election into a full-blown political thriller, the nomination paper of Congress candidate Meenakshi Natarajan has been rejected by Returning Officer Arvind Sharma over alleged non-disclosure of a pending court case in Telangana.
But how did the BJP get hold of papers related to the alleged case against Meenakshi Nataraj that has been "pending" in Telangana?
BJP's 'Internal Sabotage' Tadka
Adding tadka to the political thriller, the BJP claimed an internal Congress sabotage against its own candidate.
Senior BJP leader and state Cabinet Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya set the cat among political pigeons by hinting that the papers against Natarajan were leaked from within the Congress. "Who provided us with the documents? You can understand the state of the Congress party from this. We are receiving documents from Telangana where they are in power," Vijayvargiya said.
He went a step further, suggesting that the BJP may have received help from the Congress itself. "We must have received the information from people within the Congress," he remarked.
It's not just the BJP parading the "internal sabotage" theory. Opposition BRS in Telangana also blamed Congress's "internal power struggle" in the state behind the leak of the case and rejection of Natarajan's Rajya Sabha nomination. Meenakshi Nataraj in the Congress in-charge of Telangana.
"Natarajan had previously opposed Chief Minister Revanth Reddy's dream projects, including MUSI beautification and other controversial moves such as Khammam Demolition & University of Hyderabad deforestation, leaving the state government embarrassed," said BRS M Krishank.
Telangana to MP: The 'Paper' Trail
However, according to information obtained by NDTV from BJP sources, the documents did not come through a mysterious Congress leak but through a planned political channel. Telangana BJP President Ramchander Rao is learnt to have provided Madhya Pradesh BJP President Hemant Khandelwal with documents related to Meenakshi Natarajan, including details of court cases and legal notices.
These documents were sent to Bhopal last Monday, NDTV has learnt. Once the papers reached the Madhya Pradesh BJP leadership, the party moved fast. Sources said Khandelwal briefed Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav. The BJP then finalised its legal strategy and entrusted the task of arguing the objection before the Returning Officer to party leader Rahul Kothari and former judge Rohit Arya.
What followed was a sharp legal and political challenge that completely altered the dynamics of the Rajya Sabha contest.
Stumped Congress Objects
The Congress has strongly questioned not only the objection but also the manner in which the proceedings unfolded. Congress leader and lawyer JP Dhanopia objected to the presence of retired High Court judge Rohit Arya during the nomination scrutiny process.
"In what capacity was he present there? He was neither a candidate, nor an agent, nor an authorised party to the election process. There are also serious questions regarding the procedure followed," Dhanopia said.
The controversy stems from a 2022 matter in Telangana, where a woman had accused a Congress leader of harassment and threats. The woman alleged that despite her complaint, the Congress leadership failed to take strict action against Reddy.
According to the complainant, she had also raised the matter before Meenakshi Natarajan, who was then associated with the Congress organisation in Telangana.
The Congress, however, argued that Natarajan was not an accused in any FIR and that no criminal case had been registered against her. Therefore, the party maintained, there was no legal requirement to mention the matter in the nomination affidavit.
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