INDORE: The festival of election in India has taken a surprising turn in Indore, where the Congress leader Akshay Bam has withdrawn his nomination on Monday.
Senior BJP leader, Kailash Vijayvargiya posted a photo with Bam in his car on X and wrote, “ “It is a momentous occasion to welcome Shri Akshay Kant Bam, Congress candidate from Indore, to the BJP under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP National President Shri JP Nadda, Chief Minister Shri Mohan Yadav, and State President Shri Vishnu Dutt Sharma,”
The move was taken on the last day for withdrawal of nominations, with polling scheduled in the fourth phase of the elections in Indore on May 13. The BJP has fielded sitting MP Shankar Lalwani from the Indore seat.
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Bam, who has not contested any election in his political career so far, was offered the opportunity to contest from Indore by the Congress including three former MLAs, who defected to the BJP ahead of the elections.
Indore, is the largest constituency in the central state in terms of the number of voters, with 25.13 lakh electors. The state is traditionally considered a BJP stronghold, as the party secured 28 out of 29 parliamentary seats in the 2019 elections, with only one seat in Chhindwara going to the Congress.
Eight candidates, mostly Independents including BSP’s Pyarelal Bharti, withdrew their nominations of the 24 nominations, on the last day of nomination withdrawal before polling.