3 min readRanchiUpdated: Jun 11, 2026 04:01 AM IST
A day after objections were raised by the Congress and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) against the nomination papers of NDA-backed Independent Rajya Sabha candidate Parimal Nathwani, the Returning Officer Wednesday cleared his nomination, finding the documents submitted by him to be valid.
With the decision, the path is now clear for Nathwani, a Gujarat-based businessman and sitting YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) Rajya Sabha MP, to contest the June 18 election for two Rajya Sabha seats from Jharkhand.
The scrutiny of nomination papers was conducted on Tuesday for the three candidates in the fray, JMM nominee Baidyanath Ram, Congress candidate Pranav Jha and Independent candidate Nathwani, who is backed by the NDA. While the nominations of Ram and Jha were accepted during the initial scrutiny, Nathwani’s papers were kept pending after objections were raised by the Congress and JMM.
The controversy also triggered political protests outside the Assembly Wednesday. While BJP workers staged a demonstration demanding acceptance of Nathwani’s nomination papers, Congress workers held a protest against the Centre, raising slogans against the BJP-led Union government.
Officials informed that the police stopped BJP supporters from entering the Vidhan Sabha premises and during the protests, a brief altercation broke out between a small group of BJP workers and Congress supporters near the Assembly complex.
According to the official information, Congress leader and Kolebira MLA Naman Bixal Kongari, who was one of the proposers of Congress candidate Pranav Jha, raised the objection against Nathwani.
The Returning Officer had subsequently asked Nathwani or his authorised representative to present their case before a final decision was taken.
Story continues below this ad
Congress had alleged that Nathwani had not disclosed certain personal details in his nomination papers, including information relating to companies where he serves as a director. The Congress had also pointed to an alleged discrepancy in the manner in which his name was mentioned in the nomination documents.
The BJP, however, had dismissed the objections as baseless. BJP general secretary Amar Kumar Bauri said that they already were sure that the objections raised by the parties were meritless and that Nathwani would furnish all necessary clarifications before the officer.
“The objections were baseless. He was given time to present his side and he provided the right information to the authorities,” Bauri had said.
Nathwani, who represented Jharkhand in the Rajya Sabha as an Independent for two consecutive terms between 2008 and 2020, is seeking another term with the support of the NDA.
Story continues below this ad
The June 18 election will also see JMM’s Baidyanath Ram and Congress nominee Pranav Jha contesting for the two vacancies created following the death of JMM founder Shibu Soren and the completion of BJP MP Deepak Prakash’s term.
