The Congress filed a complaint with the Surat police commissioner seeking an FIR against the three proposers of party’s Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani whose nomination for the Surat Lok Sabha seat was rejected after they claimed their signatures on the form were forged.
The complaint by Congress also sought action against returning officer and district collector Sourabh Pardhi over the rejection of the nomination form last month.
In the complaint submitted to Surat police commissioner Anupam Singh Gahlaut, Congress worker Ashok Pimple (67) alleged that Kumbhani’s three proposers - Ramesh Polra, Jagdish Savaliya, and Dhruvin Dhameliya - deliberately ensured that his nomination form was rejected and he got disqualified. Congress had sought that the proposers and Pardhi be booked for forgery and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
“It is for a civil court to decide whether the signatures were forged or not. In Kumbhani’s case, the district collector (as returning officer) decided the signatures’ authenticity even when he does not have the power for the same,” said Congress zonal spokesperson Zameer Shaikh.
When the three proposers obtained certificates to be attached with the nomination form from deputy collector at Olpad town in Surat district, proving they are voters of the same constituency, they must have signed before the officer, he opined.
“When scrutinizing the nomination papers, the returning office did not examine the signatures of the proposers used to obtain certificates issued by the deputy collector when concluding discrepancies in their signatures that led to the rejection of the candidate's form,” Shaikh noted.
The Gujarat Congress on April 26 suspended Kumbhani from the party for six years, days after his nomination form was rejected over discrepancies, leading to BJP candidate Mukesh Dalal getting elected unopposed.
Surat police commissioner Anupam Gahlaut said: “Any complaint regarding the issue will be dealt with after taking into consideration the decision taken by the election officer who follows the election commission’s protocols and guidelines.”
