The fourth phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, scheduled for May 13, will witness elections in one of the most talked about seats of Madhya Pradesh. Indore, where Congress has not registered a victory since 1989, will see an interesting battle after the grand old party's candidate withdrew his nomination and joined the rival BJP. Hurt by losing the seat even before the elections, Congress has adopted a different game plan; they are asking voters to press the NOTA button to teach the BJP a lesson.
NOTA, or None of the Above, was added in 2013 as an alternative choice for the Indian voter, following the directions of the Supreme Court. The mechanism is set up to capture voters' disapproval while all candidates are in the fray.
Akshay Kanti Bam earned the Congress ticket to contest for the Indore Lok Sabha seat, but he withdrew his nomination after being summoned by the police in some old cases. Later, Akshay Kanti Bam joined the BJP in the presence of senior leaders and ministers of Madhya Pradesh. The developments made the elections easy for BJP candidate and sitting MP Shankar Lalwani.
'Murder of democracy'
The Congress responded to the development with sharp attacks on the BJP and filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking permission to field a replacement candidate.
After the Supreme Court rejected the plea, the Congress did not take much time to come up with an alternative strategy and started asking voters to press the NOTA button and punish the BJP for 'killing democracy'.
“The voters of Indore had given the BJP a huge victory in the last municipal and assembly elections. Despite this, the BJP has murdered democracy by unfairly luring Mr Bam. Voters should give a befitting reply to the BJP by choosing the NOTA option,” said a senior Congress member. leader Shobha Ojha was quoted by news agency PTI.
“I appeal to the people of Indore… Our Congress candidate has been stolen by some people who have deprived you of your right to vote. If you want to teach them a lesson, press the NOTA button and save democracy,” he said Congress leader Sajjan Verma said in a post on X.
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Published: May 11, 2024 8:19 PM IST