From ‘Vote Chori’ to ‘Seat Chori’: Rahul Targets BJP Over Rajya Sabha Election Dispute

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused the BJP and the Election Commission (EC) of orchestrating “ seat chori ” in the Rajya Sabha elections after the nomination of Congress candidate Meenakshi Natarajan from Madhya Pradesh was rejected.

In a post on X, Gandhi alleged that after “ vote chori ” and “ sarkar chori ”, the BJP-EC “jugalbandi” had now resulted in “seat chori”, claiming the contest was ended before it could begin. He said Natarajan had submitted all required documents and had no pending legal cases, but her nomination was cancelled following what he described as a frivolous objection raised by the BJP.

Gandhi also cited the case of Parimal Nathwani , a BJP-backed Independent candidate in Jharkhand, alleging that despite errors and missing disclosures in his nomination papers, he was given time to correct them. He questioned what he called the EC’s differing treatment of the two candidates.

The Congress leader further alleged that the Election Commission failed to adequately respond to the party’s concerns during a meeting and claimed the BJP found it easier to “fix the election than to win it”.

The Congress also moved the Supreme Court against the rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination. However, the apex court declined to intervene, observing that the electoral process provides statutory remedies for such grievances and that the matter should be pursued through the appropriate channels under election law.

Responding to the allegations, BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari dismissed the charges and accused the Congress of playing the victim card. He argued that the nomination was rejected due to procedural deficiencies and cited a 2013 Supreme Court judgment stating that deliberate concealment of information constitutes a substantial defect that can justify cancellation of a nomination.

The dispute has triggered a fresh war of words between the Congress and BJP , adding to ongoing political tensions over the conduct of elections and the functioning of constitutional institutions.