Congress’ Indore Candidate Withdraws from Poll Race, ‘Welcomed’ by BJP After Surat Setback

In another blow to the Congress party, leader Akshay Kanti Bam withdrew his nomination from the Indore constituency ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, as reported by news agency PTI. The Congress had nominated Bam to contest against incumbent BJP MP Shankar Lalwani in the upcoming elections for the Indore Lok Sabha seat, scheduled for May 13 in the fourth phase.

Following Bam’s withdrawal, senior BJP leader and MLA from Indore, Kailash Vijayvargiya, extended a warm welcome for him to join the BJP. Vijayvargiya expressed his welcome on X (formerly known as Twitter), citing the leadership of PM Narendra Modi, National President JP Nadda, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, and State President VD Sharma. He also shared a photo of him with Bam in a car.

Earlier this month, Congress candidate Nilesh Kumbhani from Surat withdrew from the election race after his candidature was rejected due to discrepancies in the signature of his proposers. The party’s substitute candidate, Suresh Padsala, also faced rejection of his nomination form. Kumbhani later alleged that he received insufficient support from his party colleagues during the campaign. In response, Congress refuted his claims, accusing him of being part of a plan and subsequently suspending him from the party for six years.

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Apart from the Congress, a total of eight candidates, mostly independents, along with Pyarelal Bharti from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), withdrew their nominations from Surat. Consequently, on April 22, the BJP secured its first victory in the Lok Sabha elections, as its candidate Mukesh Dalal won uncontested from Gujarat’s Surat constituency.

Voting for other seats in Gujarat is scheduled for May 7 during the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections, with results set to be announced on June 4.