Surat:

Suspended Congress leader Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected over discrepancies leading to BJP winning the Surat Lok Sabha seat in Gujarat unopposed, resurfaced on Saturday after 20 days and alleged it was the grand old party that had betrayed him first in 2017.

Nilesh Kumbhani said he was silent all these days because of his respect for state party president Shaktisinh Gohil and the party’s Rajkot Lok Sabha candidate Paresh Dhanani.

“Congress leaders are accusing me of betrayal. However, it was the Congress which betrayed me first in the 2017 assembly elections when my ticket for Kamrej Assembly seat in Surat was cancelled at the last moment. It was the Congress which made the first mistake, not me,” Nilesh Kumbhani told reporters here.

“I did not want to do this but my supporters, office staff and workers were upset because the party is being run by five self-proclaimed leaders in Surat and they neither work nor allow others to work. Though AAP and Congress are part of INDIA alliance, these leaders raised objections when I used to campaign with AAP leaders here,” he claimed.

Asked if the turn of events in the ongoing Lok Sabha poll was his revenge on the Congress, Nilesh Kumbhani refused to give a direct reply and reiterated his charge about cancellation of ticket in the 2017 state polls.

Nilesh Kumbhani, who had earlier served as a Congress corporator in the Surat Municipal Corporation, fought the 2022 assembly polls from Kamrej but lost to the BJP.

On April 21, Nilesh Kumbhani’s nomination form was rejected after his three proposers submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming they had not signed on the document.

Incidentally, the nomination form of the Congress’ substitute candidate Suresh Padsala was also rejected, ending the party’s presence in the fray.

On April 22, BJP’s Mukesh Dalal was declared elected unopposed from Surat after all other candidates, including one from the BSP, withdrew their nominations.

Due to a pre-poll alliance with Congress, the AAP had not fielded its candidate from Surat.

Nilesh Kumbhani had gone incommunicado since April 22. He was later suspended by the Congress, which blamed him for the rejection of the nomination form and also accused him of “connivance with the BJP”.

Lok Sabha polls were held in a single phase in Gujarat on May 7. Results for 25 out of the state’s 26 seats will be declared on June 4. 

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

Surat Congress leader Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination as Lok Sabha candidate was rejected over alleged discrepancies, is missing and can’t be reached over the phone, local media reported today. This comes a day after the BJP’s Mukesh Dalal was declared winner from the BJP stronghold after all rival candidates withdrew from the contest.

Amid reports claiming that Mr Kumbhani may join the BJP, Congress workers protested outside his locked house with posters that read, “janata ka gaddar (people’s traitor)”.

The dramatic events follow the BJP’s first Lok Sabha win in Surat, unopposed. Gujarat BJP chief CR Paatil yesterday said Surat has presented “the first lotus” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “I congratulate our candidate for Surat Lok Sabha seat Mukesh Dalal for getting elected unopposed,” he said in a post on X.

The Congress has approached the Election Commission, alleging that the ruling BJP in Gujarat exerted “wrong and undue influence”, and demanded a restart of the poll process.

“We have therefore requested the Election Commission to postpone the election in Surat and redo the election shorty to send a clear message that you cannot take advantage of this kind of wrong undue influence,” party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi told reporters after meeting the Election Commissioners yesterday.

Mr Singhvi claimed that in Surat, Congress candidate Kumbhani was nominated by four proposers, “but, suddenly all four stood up and denied their signatures”.

“This is no coincidence. The candidate is missing for many hours and by the time he resurfaces we find that every other candidate has withdrawn his candidature, every one of them. His candidature is rejected by the returning officer,” he said.

What Happened In Surat: A Timeline

April 18: Congress candidate files Nilesh Kumbhani nomination for Surat Lok Sabha seat

April 19: BJP worker Dinesh Jodhani objects to Mr Kumbhani’s nomination and alleges that signatures of his proposers are fake.

April 20: Polling officials say they received affidavits from the proposers claiming that signatures on Mr Kumbhani nomination are not theirs. The district election officer seeks Mr Kumbhani’s reply within a day.

April 21: The Congress candidate’s nomination is cancelled by District Election Officer (DEO) after he and his proposers do not turn up to support his nomination form. The proposers, including two close relatives of the Congress pick, could not be reached over the phone.

April 22: On the last day of withdrawing nomination, eight candidates, including the BSP pick and Independents, withdraw their nominations. BJP’s Mukesh Dalal is declared winner.