Shimla:

The Himachal Pradesh High Court on Wednesday issued notice to Kangana Ranaut, the BJP Lok Sabha member from Mandi, on a petition filed by a Kinnaur resident for setting aside her election on the grounds that his nomination papers to contest from the Lok Sabha constituency were allegedly wrongly rejected.

Issuing the notice, Justice Jyotsna Rewal directed Ms Ranaut to file a reply by August 21.

Ms Ranaut had won the Mandi Lok Sabha seat, defeating her rival Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh by 74,755 votes. She had polled 5,37,002 votes against Singh’s 4,62,267 votes.

Pleading for setting aside the election of Ms Ranaut, the petitioner, Layak Ram Negi, maintained that his nomination papers were wrongly rejected by the returning officer (Deputy Commissioner, Mandi) and also made him a party.

Negi, an ex-employee of the forest department, said that he got premature retirement and produced a “no dues certificate” from the department along with nomination papers to the returning officer.

However, he was given a day to produce the “no due certificate” from the electricity, water, and telephone departments and when he submitted them, the returning officer did not accept them and rejected the nomination papers.

He pleaded that he could have won the election had his papers been accepted and said that the election be set aside. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Newly-elected BJP MP and Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut has asked people in her Lok Sabha constituency, Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi, to bring their Aadhaar Cards with them if they want to meet her, drawing Congress’ ire.

Speaking to reporters, Ms Ranaut also said the purpose of their visit will have to be written down on paper so that they don’t face any inconvenience.

“Himachal Pradesh attracts a lot of tourists, so it is necessary to have an Aadhaar card from the Mandi area. Your work related to the constituency should also be written in the letter so that you don’t have to face inconvenience,” she said.

“Tourists come so much that common people face a lot of inconveniences,” she said.

She also said that if people from Himachal’s northern region want to meet her, they can visit her home in Manali, while people in Mandi can visit her office in the city.

“It is better when you meet in person regarding your work,” she added.

Congress Attacks Kangana Ranaut

Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh, who lost to Kangana Ranaut from the Mandi Lok Sabha seat, attacked his rival and said if the people want to meet him, they “don’t need to bring the Aadhaar card”.

“We are people’s representatives. So, it is our responsibility to meet people from every section of the state. Whether it is a small task, a big task, a policy matter, or a personal work, it does not require any identity. If a person is coming to a public representative, they are coming for some work,” Mr Singh, who is also the sitting state Public Works Minister, told reporters.

“Asking people to bring their papers for a meeting is not right,” Mr Singh, the son of six times Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh and state Congress chief Pratibha Singh, said.

Chandigarh:

Every woman, irrespective of her background and profession, deserves dignity, actor Kangana Ranaut said on Tuesday, adding that she was particularly pained by Congress leaders’ comments on Mandi from where she is contesting the Lok Sabha elections on a BJP ticket.

Mandi is often referred to as “chota Kashi” the world over, Ms Ranaut told reporters outside the Chandigarh airport.

Congress leaders Supriya Shrinate and H S Ahir have kicked up a huge political row with derogatory comments on Ms Ranaut and Mandi posted on their social media handles.

“Whatever be the profession of a woman, be it a teacher, actress, journalist, politician, or a sex worker, all of them deserve dignity. I’m pained especially because of the deplorable comments made about Mandi… All of us who come from Mandi have been hurt by the comments,” Ms Ranaut said.

Asked whether she plans to take any action against the two Congress leaders, she said she had been called to Delhi by BJP president J P Nadda and would respond only after meeting him.

“I have to maintain the dignity of the party. I can’t walk before it. I have to walk with them and follow their instructions.”

The National Commission for Women (NCW) has written to the Election Commission demanding strict action against Ms Shrinate and Mr Ahir for their comments against Ms Ranaut.

“National Commission for Women is appalled by the disgraceful conduct of Ms. Supriya Shrinate and Mr H S Ahir, who made lewd and derogatory remarks about @KanganaTeam on social media. Such behavior is intolerable and goes against the dignity of women. @sharmarekha has sent a letter to the Election commissioner of India demanding an immediate and strict action against them. Let’s uphold respect and dignity for all women.#RespectWomen,” the NCW said in a post on Monday.

Kangana Ranaut, 37, had earlier hit out at Ms Shrinate, saying that she has played various roles and every woman deserves dignity.

“Dear Supriya ji, in the last 20 years of my career as an artist I have played all kinds of women. From a naive girl in ‘Queen’ to a seductive spy in ‘Dhaakad’, from a goddess in ‘Manikarnika’ to a demon in ‘Chandramukhi’, from a prostitute in ‘Rajjo’ to a revolutionary leader in ‘Thalaivii’,” Ms Ranaut tweeted.

Ms Shrinate clarified that many people have access to her Facebook and Instagram accounts, and someone from them made the inappropriate post.

“As soon as I came to know, I deleted that post. Everyone who knows me, also knows very well that I can never make personal and indecent comments towards any woman. I wanted to know how this happened,” she said.

Mr Ahir, state joint co-ordinator of Kisan Congress, also made derogatory remarks against Ms Ranaut. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)