The Congress and the Samajwadi Party extended their support to R.B. Prajapati, the All India Forward Bloc candidate on April 15. He is contesting for Madhya Pradesh’s Khajuraho seat where the nomination of the Samajwadi Party’s INDIA bloc candidate was rejected over irregularities.
Congress general secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh said that Mr. Prajapati will be the official candidate of the INDIA coalition.
“The Indian National Congress had left the Khajuraho Lok Sabha seat to its INDIA group ally Samajwadi Party. Unfortunately, in a blatant display of power going against all norms of democracy, the BJP managed to get the nomination of the SP candidate rejected,” he said.
Mr. Ramesh added, “The Indian National Congress has now decided to extend its support to R.B. Prajapati, candidate of the All India Forward Bloc, another member of the INDIA group. He will be the joint candidate of the INDIA group for Khajuraho Lok Sabha in Madya Pradesh.”
Well-planned conspiracy
Later in the day at a joint press conference at State Congress headquarters in Bhopal, SP’s State president Manoj Yadav alleged that a “well-planned conspiracy” was behind the rejecting of party candidate Meera Yadav’s nomination and said that the two parties will put their whole strength behind Mr. Prajapati now.
Ms. Yadav’s nomination was rejected by the Returning Officer allegedly due to absence of her signature in a required spot on the form and non-submission of the official voter list as per the 2023 State Assembly Elections.
The move was slammed by both the Congress and the Samajwadi Party. They accused the BJP of “murdering democracy”.
The BJP has fielded its State unit president and sitting MP V.D. Sharma from Khajuraho. The constituency will go to polls in the second phase on April 26.
