Headlines
Hurdles in Roopa Ganguly contesting Kolkata civic polls
Projected as the BJP's face in the upcoming Kolkata Municipal
Corporation (KMC) election, actor-turned-politician Roopa Ganguly may
not be able to contest the polls owing to a technical glitch clouding
her nomination.
Not being a voter from any municipal ward in the
city, Ganguly cannot contest the polls, as the West Bengal Municipal
Elections Act, 1994 debars any candidate who is not a voter of the
municipality from contesting.
Section 29A(c) of the Act states:
"A person shall not be qualified for being chosen to fill a seat in a
municipality unless such person is an elector in relation to that
municipality."
The development comes as an embarrassment for the
BJP with the party sending a delegation to the office of the State
Election Commission to argue for Ganguly who has been declared a
candidate from ward No.96.
The last date for filing nominations for the April 18 polls is March 23.
While
state BJP president Rahul Sinha said the party has not lost hope and
was trying to sort out the legal glitch, Ganguly who gained cult
popularity for playing Draupadi in the television series "Mahabharat",
blamed the state's ruling Trinamool Congress.
"After the
Trinamool gained ground in the state in 2009, my name from the voters
list was deleted. Since I am not known as a Trinamool sympathiser, my
name has been deleted," said Ganguly, known for her roles in films like
"Padma Nadir Majhi" by Gautam Ghose, "Yugant" by Aparna Sen and
"Antarmahal" by Rituparno Ghosh.