The defeat of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Surendra Pal Singh in the election for the Karanpur Assembly seat has come as a jolt to the party about a month after it formed the government in Rajasthan.
The Assembly election had been adjourned following the death of Congress candidate Gurmeet Singh Kooner on November 15. Rajasthan went to polls on November 25 to elect its new Legislative Assembly. The BJP inducted Mr. Singh into the Council of Ministers soon after the BJP’s victory in the State and made him a Minister of State (independent charge) on December 30.
This prompted the Congress to lodge a complaint with the Election Commission (EC) alleging violation of the Model Code of Conduct. Claiming that the BJP’s “ego was at its peak,” Congress’ Rajasthan unit chief Govind Singh Dotasra said that this was “probably the first time in the country that a candidate was made minister before the election.” The EC did not take any decision on the party’s plea to disqualify Mr. Singh.
