Kangana Ranaut emerged victorious in the Mandi Lok Sabha seat, securing a significant lead over her rival Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh by 74,755 votes.
The Himachal Pradesh High Court has issued a notice to Kangana Ranaut, the BJP Lok Sabha member from Mandi. This notice comes in response to a petition filed by a Kinnaur resident, Layak Ram Negi, who is seeking to set aside Ranaut’s election on the grounds of alleged wrongful rejection of his nomination papers to contest from the Lok Sabha constituency. Justice Jyotsna Rewal, overseeing the case, has directed Ranaut to file a reply by August 21.
Kangana Ranaut emerged victorious in the Mandi Lok Sabha seat, securing a significant lead over her rival Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh by 74,755 votes. Ranaut garnered 5,37,002 votes compared to Singh’s 4,62,267 votes, solidifying her win. However, Negi, the petitioner, argues that his nomination papers were unjustly rejected by the returning officer, Deputy Commissioner of Mandi, which ultimately impacted the election results.
Allegations of Unfair Rejection
Negi, a former employee of the forest department, contends that despite providing a ‘no dues certificate’ from the department along with his nomination papers, they were dismissed by the returning officer. He highlights that he was given additional requirements to fulfill regarding certificates from other departments (from the electricity, water, and telephone departments), which he promptly submitted. Despite his efforts, the nomination papers were rejected, leading Negi to believe that this decision significantly affected the election outcome.
Negi asserts that had his nomination papers been accepted, he could have potentially won the election, emphasizing the impact of the rejection on the electoral process. As a result, he is urging the court to set aside the election results and address the alleged discrepancies.