Congress down to 2 MPs in MP after Natarajan nomination rejection
Synopsis
Congress is down to just two MPs from Madhya Pradesh — its weakest state representation in recent memory — after the Election Commission rejected Meenakshi Natarajan's Rajya Sabha nomination and the nomination deadline lapsed without a replacement. With the BJP set for an uncontested sweep of all three seats, the party is now fighting back in the Supreme Court while launching street protests, turning a procedural setback into a full-blown democratic rights battle.
Key Takeaways
Meenakshi Natarajan 's Rajya Sabha nomination from Madhya Pradesh was rejected by the Election Commission of India , with the deadline now past for a replacement.
BJP is set to win all three Rajya Sabha seats from Madhya Pradesh unopposed .
Congress is left with just two MPs from the state's 40-member parliamentary contingent — its weakest representation in recent history.
The party holds only 62 seats in the 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly , limiting its future Rajya Sabha prospects.
Senior leader Vivek Tankha announced the party will challenge the ECI decision in the Supreme Court , with a petition expected on Thursday .
MP Congress President Jitu Patwari announced statewide protests from Thursday at block, district, and Assembly levels.
The Indian National Congress is staring at its weakest parliamentary representation from Madhya Pradesh in recent history, reduced to just two Rajya Sabha members out of the state's 40-member parliamentary contingent after the nomination of Meenakshi Natarajan was rejected by the Election Commission of India (ECI). With the nomination deadline now past, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is set to sweep all three Rajya Sabha seats from the state unopposed.
How Congress Reached This Low Point
Madhya Pradesh sends 29 members to the Lok Sabha and 11 members to the Rajya Sabha. The BJP's clean sweep of all 29 Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 general election had already wiped out Congress's presence in the Lower House from the state. The rejection of Natarajan's nomination has now compounded that blow, leaving the party with only two Rajya Sabha representatives and just 62 legislators in the 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly.
Natarajan, a former Member of Parliament and close associate of the Congress high command, had been fielded as part of the party's strategy to broaden social outreach ahead of the next state Assembly election. With no substitute candidate possible after the deadline lapsed, the BJP nominees are set for an uncontested win.
Congress Cries Foul, Heads to Supreme Court
Senior Congress Rajya Sabha member and advocate Vivek Tankha, who met Election Commission officials in New Delhi alongside senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, questioned the democratic implications of the decision. 'By disqualifying a national party's candidate from the election, you have handed a walkover to another party's candidate; such a walkover is not good for democracy,' Tankha said. He indicated the party would challenge the decision before the Supreme Court, with a petition expected to be filed on Thursday.
Former Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh described the development as a serious assault on democratic traditions, alleging that constitutional norms had been undermined. 'Democracy was murdered in Madhya Pradesh yesterday,' Singh said, drawing a contrast with electoral conduct during former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's tenure.
Madhya Pradesh Congress President Jitu Patwari announced a statewide agitation, with the party set to launch continuous protests at the block, district, and Assembly levels across the state from Thursday. 'This is not just the rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan's nomination; this is the murder of democracy in Madhya Pradesh,' Patwari said.
BJP Deflects, Points to Internal Congress Rift
The BJP denied orchestrating the nomination cancellation, instead attributing it to an internal rift within the Madhya Pradesh Congress unit. Cabinet Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya dismissed the Congress's allegations, suggesting the episode had exposed fissures within the opposition. 'Who provided us with the documents? You can understand the state of the Congress party from this. We are receiving documents from Telangana, where they are in power. We must have received the information from people within the Congress,' he said.
What the Future Holds for Congress in MP
The party's remaining Rajya Sabha tenure from Madhya Pradesh is on a ticking clock. Vivek Tankha is scheduled to complete his term in June 2028, coinciding with the run-up to the next Madhya Pradesh Assembly election. The party's other Rajya Sabha representative, Ashok Singh, will complete his tenure in 2030. Unless Congress substantially improves its Assembly tally — currently at just 62 seats in a 230-member House — retaining even these seats in future Rajya Sabha elections will be a steep challenge. The nomination controversy has now simultaneously become a political and judicial battle for the party.
Point of View
Not merely a procedural misfortune. A party with only 62 of 230 Assembly seats simply lacks the legislative arithmetic to compete for Rajya Sabha berths — and that weakness is self-reinforcing. What makes this moment particularly sharp is the BJP's counter-narrative: that Congress's own members leaked the disqualifying documents. Whether true or not, the allegation lands because internal discipline within the MP Congress has visibly frayed. The Supreme Court petition may generate headlines, but the harder reckoning is electoral — without a credible Assembly recovery plan, the party risks being a spectator in its own state for the better part of this decade.
NationPress
26 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was Meenakshi Natarajan's Rajya Sabha nomination rejected?
The Election Commission of India rejected Meenakshi Natarajan's nomination for the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh, though the Congress has not publicly disclosed the specific technical grounds. The party has announced it will challenge the decision in the Supreme Court, with a petition expected on Thursday.
How many MPs does Congress now have from Madhya Pradesh?
Congress is left with just two MPs from Madhya Pradesh — both in the Rajya Sabha. The BJP swept all 29 Lok Sabha seats from the state in the 2024 general election, and with Natarajan's nomination rejected, Congress has no presence in the Lower House and a minimal one in the Upper House.
Who are Congress's remaining Rajya Sabha members from Madhya Pradesh?
The two remaining Congress Rajya Sabha members from Madhya Pradesh are Vivek Tankha, whose term ends in June 2028, and Ashok Singh, whose tenure runs until 2030.
What is the BJP's response to the nomination controversy?
The BJP denied any role in the nomination cancellation. Cabinet Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya suggested the episode exposed internal divisions within Congress, claiming that documents used to challenge Natarajan's nomination were provided by Congress members themselves, including from Telangana where the party is in power.
What action is Congress taking in response to the rejection?
Congress is pursuing both legal and political remedies. Senior leader Vivek Tankha announced the party will file a petition in the Supreme Court on Thursday challenging the Election Commission's decision. MP Congress President Jitu Patwari also announced statewide protests starting Thursday at block, district, and Assembly levels across Madhya Pradesh.
