Kolkata, 23 September (H.S.) : The West Bengal Pradesh Congress has moved the Calcutta High Court challenging the election affidavit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate for the Nandigram by-election, Hasirani Rath. The Congress alleged glaring discrepancies concerning the candidate's declared birth year and the year she passed her secondary examinations. On Wednesday, Congress leader and advocate Riju Ghoshal drew the attention of Justice Krishna Rao's bench to the matter.

Advocate Ghoshal submitted before the court that the details regarding Rath's age and educational qualifications presented in the affidavit were practically impossible.

According to the affidavit, the candidate’s stated age of over 60 years places her birth around 1966. However, the same document states that she passed her secondary (Madhyamik) examinations in 1965. The petitioner raised sharp questions before the court on how a candidate could clear secondary school examinations a year prior to her birth.

During the hearing, Justice Krishna Rao inquired about the specific relief being sought by the petitioner. The counsel responded that Rath's nomination should be cancelled immediately. Questioning the scrutiny process of the Election Commission of India (ECI), Ghoshal contended that despite verifying the affidavit, the commission failed to act on an evident discrepancy. He argued that if an educational qualification claim proves fraudulent, the nomination must be rejected, adding that disqualifying a candidate would not stall the by-election as other candidates remain in the fray. Following these submissions, Justice Rao granted permission to officially file the petition, with the matter likely to be taken up for hearing on Thursday.

Earlier on Tuesday, West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee President Shubhankar Sarkar had formally urged the Election Commission to launch an impartial inquiry into the issue. In a statement, Sarkar described the poll body’s inaction as deeply concerning despite public exposure of the discrepancies. The BJP has categorically refuted the allegations, dismissing Congress’s legal challenge as a desperate and futile political maneuver against its Nandigram candidate.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh