New Delhi

The Congress on Tuesday launched a sharp attack on the BJP after the nomination papers of its Rajya Sabha candidate from Madhya Pradesh, Meenakshi Natarajan, were rejected. The party also sent a delegation to the Election Commission to challenge the decision.

Congress general secretary K C Venugopal alleged that the rejection of Natarajan's nomination was a deliberate attempt by the BJP to undermine democratic processes and deny the Congress a Rajya Sabha seat.

In a post on X, Venugopal dismissed allegations of errors or non-disclosure in the nomination papers, calling them baseless and politically motivated. He claimed the ruling party resorted to such measures after failing to influence Congress MLAs and accused it of acting against democratic principles.

The Congress leader further alleged that the BJP's actions reflected a disregard for constitutional values and vowed that the party would challenge the decision through both legal and political means.

Meanwhile, a Congress delegation, including senior leader Jairam Ramesh, visited the Election Commission seeking intervention in the matter.

Speaking to reporters outside the poll body's office, Ramesh said the delegation had come to submit a formal petition regarding the rejection of the party candidate's nomination. He also expressed dissatisfaction over what he described as delays in allowing the delegation to meet Election Commission officials.

Ramesh said the party only wanted to present its representation and questioned why its leaders were being made to wait. He termed the situation unusual and criticised the handling of the matter.

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The controversy comes ahead of the biennial Rajya Sabha elections, for which voting is scheduled to take place on June 18.