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Rajya Sabha polls: Congress candidate Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination rejected; party delegation to meet ECI
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A dramatic day of political developments in Madhya Pradesh’s capital Bhopal, that began with several Congress MLAs heading to the airport to leave for Bengaluru, ended with the nomination of Meenakshi Natarajan, the party candidate for one of three Rajya Sabha seats from the State, being rejected during scrutiny.This prompted top Congress leaders, led by its national general secretary K.C. Venugopal, to stage a sit-in outside the Election Commission of India (ECI)’s office in New Delhi. The rejection came at a time when a batch of Congress MLAs was en route to Bengaluru amid fears of cross- voting in the polls, prompting the State leaders to ask them to return to Bhopal. Ms. Natarajan accused the BJP of having “moved from vote theft to seat theft”.After Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination rejection, Congress delegation turns away by EC “It started when the BJP fielded a third candidate despite not having the adequate number of members, and we started to understand the kind of politics it is practising with democracy and the Constitution. What was limited to vote theft through SIR (Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls) and other methods has today reached (the stage of) seat theft,” she said, at a press conference late on Tuesday with senior State party leaders. Ms. Natarajan’s nomination was rejected by Assembly Secretary Arvind Sharma, who is also the Returning Officer for the election, based on an objection raised by BJP candidate for the third seat Mahesh Kewat and State party general secretary Rahul Kothari. They alleged that Ms. Natarajan had “hidden” details of a case lodged against her in Telangana’s Hyderabad. The objection led to chaotic scenes at the Assembly Secretariat in Bhopal, with dozens of Congress and BJP workers coming face to face and engaging in arguments. Several senior State BJP leaders and MLAs, including Cabinet Ministers Rakesh Singh and Kailash Vijayvargiya, as well as Mr. Kewat remained in the Assembly Secretariat during the proceedings and celebrated after the Returning Officer ruled against Ms. Natarajan. Mr. Singh said, “She had deliberately hidden this case in the information provided by her. The form was incomplete. She had given wrong details. On all those issues, a proper opportunity was given, and both sides put forth their arguments. But since there were serious errors in her form, and the case lodged in Telangana had been hidden deliberately, the Returning Officer rejected her form.”The case pertains to a private complaint against various individuals, including Ms. Natarajan, under BNS Sections 356, 351(2), 61, 45, 46, and 79. The Congress, however, has maintained that this was not a criminal case and only a notice had been issued to Ms. Natarajan to which she had responded. Congress Rajya Sabha MP and senior lawyer Vivek Tankha said on X, “Confusion is being spread regarding Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination. No criminal case has been registered. Only a notice has been received stating why proceedings for ₹10 crore compensation should not be initiated against her and other people. Meenakshi ji’s lawyer has responded to this notice. No FIR has been filed.”Ms. Natarajan alleged that the BJP challenged her nomination “in the guise of a legal notice” after it realised that the Congress MLAs were united. “When they felt this was a united house, then in the guise of a legal notice, which was not even taken into cognisance, they challenged the election petition. Our lawyers presented the arguments, but they were not even properly heard or considered, and the decision was delivered. Their intention has become clear,” she said.“The question is whether the federal structure of India and the democracy will survive or not. Will attempts to bring a one-party system and dictatorship here be destroyed or not? We will challenge this before every democratic forum,” she added.Late in the evening, a Congress delegation, comprising Mr. Venugopal, Sachin Pilot and Bhupesh Baghel, arrived outside the ECI
Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy has said the Congress leaders were making unnecessary statements regarding the Rajya Sabha ticket issue and displaying unwarranted sympathy towards former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda. | D. Kumaraswamy has clarified that former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda never asked their alliance partner, the Bharatiya Janata Party, for ticket to contest the Rajya Sabha elections. Fielding queries during an interaction at Thaggahalli village in Srirangapatna, Mr. Kumaraswamy said the Congress leaders were making unnecessary statements regarding the Rajya Sabha ticket issue and displaying unwarranted sympathy towards Mr. Deve Gowda. “Did Mr. Deve Gowda ask for it (Rajya Sabha seat)?” he asked, while pointing out that the BJP had 60 MLAs and the JD(S) is not concerned about it. Mr. Kumaraswamy, however, slammed the Congress for attempting to create a divide between the alliance partners by its “sudden sympathy” for the former Prime Minister.Referring to observations in certain quarters that Mr. Deve Gowda could have raised a voice for Karnataka if he were sent to the Rajya Sabha, Mr. Kumaraswamy said he does not need to be in power to raise his voice. “His voice will be heard even if he is not in power,” he remarked.“Mr. Deve Gowda is a fighter. He has never craved power. When his self-respect was hurt, he even gave up the post of Prime Minister. Does the Congress not know this?” he asked.Mr. Kumaraswamy also sought to clarify that Mr. Deve Gowda had not entered the Rajya Sabha during the previous elections because of the Congress’s support. “No party then had sufficient strength to field and elect its own candidate against him. Our party had the required numbers, and that is how Mr. Deve Gowda was elected to the Rajya Sabha,” he said.Reacting to observation in certain quarters about the loss of a seat for a Vokkaliga, Mr. Kumaraswamy remarked: “What is the need for a Rajya Sabha seat when Karnataka has a Vokkaliga Chief Minister? Let us wait for two months and see what happens”.‘Crocodile tears’Meanwhile, launching a counter-attack at the Congress for terming Mr. Deve Gowda not getting to contest the Rajya Sabha polls as the BJP heaping humiliation on the nonagenarian leader, BJP State president B.Y. Vijayendra asked the Congress to desist from “shedding crocodile tears” over Mr. Gowda.He also accused the Congress of trying to drive a wedge between the BJP and JD(S).“It is the Congress that haunted Mr. Deve Gowda throughout his political career and tried to divide his party. It is really a joke that after all these, the Congress leaders are showing artificial concern towards Mr. Deve Gowda,” he said. Published - June 09, 2026 07:28 pm IST
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, state BJP President Hemant Khandelwal and others present as party candidate Mahesh Kewat files his nomination papers for Rajya Sabha elections, at State assembly, in Bhopal, on Monday, June 8, 2026. | The name of Mr. Kewat, an OBC leader from the Bundelkhand region and chairperson of the State’s Fishermen Welfare Board, was announced late on Sunday after rounds of meetings of top State BJP leaders in Bhopal over the weekend and a nod from the party’s national leadership.The BJP’s move pushed the Congress into alert mode with Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Umang Singhar hosting party MLAs and senior leaders over dinner at his residence and to discuss the election strategy. A senior party leader, present at the dinner meeting, said options such as moving the MLAs to a Congress-ruled State like Karnataka or Telangana are being considered and a report will sent to the national leadership. “Talks about moving MLAs to either Bengaluru or Hyderabad are going on as about 20 of them have said that they have received communications from the BJP with offers,” the leader said, requesting anonymity.The three seats that are going to fall vacant from Madhya Pradesh are currently held by Union Minister George Kurien, BJP MP Sumer Singh Solanki and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh.Poised to secure two seats, the BJP has around 48 MLA votes to spare, 10 short of the required minimum votes for one seat — 58. The party earlier announced national general secretary Tarun Chugh and State unit secretary Rajneesh Agrawal as candidates for two seats.The Congress currently has 62 legal votes, just enough to secure one seat. The announcement of Mr. Kewat’s candidature prompted Congress leaders to accuse the BJP of trying to indulge in horse-trading while also asserting that all of its MLAs were backing Ms. Natarajan, a former Lok Sabha member considered close to party leader Rahul Gandhi.M.P. Congress chief Jitu Patwari alleged that the BJP’s stance on the women’s reservation in Parliament and legislatures was “hollow”. “The BJP had called a special session [of Parliament and the State Assembly] a few days ago but today when a woman has got an opportunity from the Congress, it fielded the third candidate despite having less than required numbers,” he said after accompanying Ms. Natarajan during her nomination.‘Battle of ideology’Ms. Natarajan, who is also Congress’s Telangana in-charge, dubbed the election a fight between “Gandhian ideology and the BJP’s divisive politics”. “The BJP has fielded its third candidate and now this is a battle of ideology for us as well as for democratic and constitutional values. This is a fight for dignified politics. We will fight with unity and win,” she said.Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav termed Mr. Kewat’s candidature an effort to provide representation to OBC communities. Various other senior BJP leaders expressed confidence that the party will win all three seats, while denying charges of horse-trading. Published - June 09, 2026 03:15 am IST
In total, the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi has issued 737 visas to the Indian pilgrims to participate in an annual festival to be held in Pakistan from June 10-19, according to an official statement. File | In total, the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi has issued 737 visas to the Indian pilgrims to participate in an annual festival to be held in Pakistan from June 10-19, according to an official statement.SGPC's Dharam Prachar Committee Secretary, Gurinder Singh Mathrewal, said here on Monday (June 8, 2026) that the Sikhs' apex religious body had submitted passports of 561 pilgrims to the Pakistani Embassy in New Delhi. Visas had been granted to 541 pilgrims, while 20 applicants were denied.The 'Jatha' (batch) of pilgrims will depart from the SGPC headquarters on Wednesday (June 10).Saad Ahmad Warraich, Charge d’Affaires of Pakistan to India, extended his heartfelt felicitations and wished the pilgrims a fulfilling yatra.The issuance of visas is in line with the Government of Pakistan’s commitment to fully implement the Bilateral Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines of 1974, the statement said.He said the batch would travel to Pakistan to participate in the martyrdom anniversary events.During the visit, the pilgrims will pay obeisance at various historic Sikh shrines and participate in commemorative events before returning to India on June 19.Mr. Mathrewal said pilgrims whose visas had been approved should collect their passports from the SGPC office during office hours on June 9. Published - June 09, 2026 01:50 am IST
File photo of Union Minister of Education Dharmendra Pradhan addresses a press conference in New Delhi. | During the meeting, Mr. Pradhan emphasised the need for a robust, reliable, and student-friendly payment ecosystem, particularly for post-examination services such as re-evaluation, obtaining photocopies of answer sheets, and other fee-based processes.He directed the banks to assist CBSE in establishing robust payment protocols to ensure timely transactions, immediate resolution of payment-related issues, and automatic refunds for excess or failed payments. “The banks have been asked to work closely with CBSE to strengthen the payment gateway infrastructure through advanced technical safeguards, real-time monitoring, and faster grievance redressal mechanisms,” a senior Education Ministry official said. Mr. Pradhan urged the officials to accord the highest priority to this initiative to ensure students do not face technical glitches or payment failures in the future. He also called upon the banks to ensure smooth, secure, and efficient digital transactions.The four banks assured full support and committed to implementing enhanced protocols and technical upgrades at the earliest in coordination with CBSE.Earlier on May 24, Mr. Pradhan held discussions with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman regarding recent payment and technical issues faced by students during the CBSE post-result and re-evaluation processes. Published - May 26, 2026 06:24 pm IST
A woman bids goodbye to her relatives as they depart to Saudi Arabia's Mecca for Haj pilgrimage from Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi on April 21. | Rajya Sabha MP Syed Naseer Hussain, in a post on “X”, also sought a full refund of all amounts collected under the circular and structural reforms of the Ministry’s management of the Haj pilgrimage. He called for mandatory competitive tendering and a Haj Price Stability Framework before the 2027 season. Published - May 03, 2026 05:11 pm IST
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