Madhya Pradesh: Congress Rajya Sabha candidate Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination rejected

The nomination of Meenakshi Natarajan, the Congress’ sole candidate for the June 18 Rajya Sabha elections in Madhya Pradesh, was rejected on Tuesday.

This came after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s state general secretary Rahul Kothari raised objections about Natarajan allegedly failing to disclose in her election affidavit details of a criminal case pending against her in Telangana, reported The Indian Express.

The returning officer had sought Natarajan’s response and given her until 6 pm on Tuesday to present her case. After considering her explanation, the officer rejected her nomination, Aaj Tak reported.

Natarajan later alleged at a press conference that the Congress’ advocates “were not heard”, reported PTI.

“What was limited to vote theft, has now become seat theft,” she added.

VIDEO | Rajya Sabha Polls: As her nomination was cancelled in Madhya Pradesh, Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan says, "When the number of members was not adequate, and the BJP fielded third candidate, it all started from there, and we started to understand that they are doing… pic.twitter.com/cmhViTdb76— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 9, 2026

The 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly is going to elect three members to the Rajya Sabha on June 18. With the Assembly’s effective strength at 229, a candidate requires 58 first-preference votes to win.

Of these seats, the BJP has 164 MLAs excluding the speaker. While the...

Read more