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The State Election Commission (SEC) on Thursday said it has cancelled the nomination of Mohiruddin Gazi, the TMC gram panchayat candidate from Kumarjol in North 24 Parganas district after it found that he was not in the country during the filing of nomination papers.
The SEC’s decision comes even as a petition seeking cancellation of Gazi’s candidature is pending in the Calcutta High Court.
“We had sought a report from the Immigration Department and they confirmed that when the nomination was filed, Mohiruddin Gazi was not in the country. Therefore, we took a decision to cancel his candidature,” a senior SEC official said.
Last week, a CPI(M) candidate filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court, alleging that Gazi’s nomination papers were filed while he was in Saudi Arabia. The petitioner also submitted a communique from the Haj Committee which stated that Gazi has been in Saudi Arabia since June 4 and is scheduled to stay there till July 16.
The nomination process for the July 8 panchayat elections began on June 9 and concluded on June 15.
While admitting the petition, Justice Amrita Sinha of the Calcutta High Court had pulled up the SEC for the lapse and sought a response at the earliest.
Incidentally, Gazi’s wife is a two-time gram panchayat head of Kumarjol. This time, with the seat no more being reserved for women, the TMC fielded Gazi.
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