Achi news desk-
Appeal for re-election in Surat, petition in the Supreme Court
– Image: Graphics by amar ujala
expansion
BJP candidate Mukesh Dalal was declared unopposed from Gujarat’s Surat Lok Sabha seat after Congress candidate Nilesh Kumbahani’s nomination was rejected and other candidates withdrew their nominations. A petition has now been filed in the Supreme Court regarding the Surat re-election. For this purpose, the right of the voters to vote on the NOTA option has been established.
The petition states that even after the Congress candidate’s nomination was rejected and other candidates withdrew their nominations, the public still had the option to vote for NOTA. When the Election Commission declared Mukesh Dalal as elected unopposed, the voters were deprived of their right to vote using the NOTA option. A request was submitted to the Supreme Court that in order to maintain the reliability of the NOTA option, the Election Commission should be ordered to hold repeat elections in Surat.
Petitioner Pratap Chandra told Amar Ojala that denying voters any option in democracy is an affront to democratic values. It is also a devaluation of voter rights. Since the BJP candidate was declared elected unopposed from the Surat Lok Sabha seat without even holding the election, it amounts to hijacking the NOTA option from the voters, which cannot be said to be fair in any way. According to him, it is very important to hold elections in Surat to protect the rights of voters.
