BHOPAL: What began as a high-stakes political gamble by BJP and triggered allegations of horse-trading, constitutional conspiracy, midnight protests and legal warfare finally ended on Thursday with an anti-climactic yet politically explosive finale for the Congress in Madhya Pradesh’s Rajya Sabha battle. With the 3 pm deadline for withdrawal of nominations expiring and Congress nominee Meenakshi Natarajan’s rejected nomination remaining unrestored, BJP’s three candidates — Tarun Chugh, Rajneesh Agarwal and Mahesh Kewat — were declared elected unopposed by the returning officer, who is also the principal secretary of the state assembly. Soon after receiving their certificates at the assembly premises, the newly elected MPs met BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal, who congratulated them and distributed sweets amid celebrations by party leaders and workers. The dramatic conclusion came despite Congress approaching both the Election Commission of India and the Supreme Court in a desperate attempt to revive Natarajan’s candidature after her nomination was rejected during scrutiny over alleged concealment of information related to a Telangana case. While the ECI did not take any decision till Thursday evening, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the matter on Friday. The development marked the culmination of one of the most politically charged Rajya Sabha contests in the state in recent years. The controversy erupted after BJP fielded Mahesh Kewat as a surprise third candidate despite lacking clear numbers on paper, triggering intense political manoeuvring within Congress amid fears of cross-voting and poaching attempts. Congress leaders had even explored shifting MLAs outside the state before the nomination battle dramatically overtook the numbers game. Over the past three days, Bhopal witnessed unprecedented political scenes — Congress leaders staging overnight sit-ins outside the CEO office, MLAs lying on roads in protest, party workers hanging an RSS uniform on the locked gate of the election office, and senior leaders accusing constitutional institutions of functioning under political pressure. Reacting sharply in the morning as BJP candidates were likely to be declared elected unopposed, Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar questioned the Election Commission’s silence. “When the Election Commission has special powers to intervene and decide such matters, why was no timely decision taken on Congress’ objection? Why is there activism in BJP’s matters and silence in Congress’ case?” he said, adding that the issue was linked not merely to one candidate but to “the credibility of the democratic and electoral process itself.” Congress leaders maintained that the fight was far from over and expressed hope that the Supreme Court’s hearing on Friday could still bring relief, even as BJP celebrated what it described as a historic political victory in the state.
