Days after the cancellation of his nomination from Surat, Congress candidate Nilesh Kumbhani accused the party of betraying him. He said that he did not betray the party, rather, the party itself had betrayed him.
During a press conference he blamed Congress and hinted at the recent Congress Surat fiasco as a revenge, citing an incident from 2017 when he got an assembly ticket. He said seven years ago, he got the assembly ticket and was campaigning. However, at the time of nomination, his tickets was cancelled and given to someone else.
He alleged that in Congress elections tickets were bought and those who paid more got the ticket. Notably, after his nomination was cancelled, he escaped from the public eye. Kumbhani’s statement comes days after the conclusion of voting for the rest of 25 Lok Sabha seats on May 7.
On the question of hiding,Kumbhani said, “I was at my home and was not hiding. I was silent to avoid damage to the Congress.party and appeared after the election.”
Kumbhani blamed Congress leaders of harassment
Kumbhani told the media that he was ready to contest the elections and was campaigning with Aam Aadmi Party leaders, as both the parties were in alliance. However, the other Congress party leaders were not happy with this and they continued to harass him. So he decided to teach them a lesson.
He also said that after the nomination was cancelled, he was going to Ahmedabad for the legal process, but some leaders accused him of betrayal. Disheartened by it, he gave up the idea of contesting elections.
On April 21, his nomination was rejected by the poll body after his proposers claimed that they didn't sign his papers. Due to his disqualification and others’ withdrawal from the fray, BJP’s Mukesh Dalal won the Surat Lok Sabha constituency unopposed and ahead of the polls. The Congress party later expelled him for 6 years.
