12 nominations found valid for Udhampur LS seat
Kathua/Jammu, Mar 28 (PTI) The nomination papers of 12 candidates, including those of Union minister Dr Jitendra Singh and Congress candidate Choudhary Lal Singh, for elections to the Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency in Jammu and Kashmir were today found valid after scrutiny.
The returning officer for the Udhampur parliamentary constituency, Dr Rakesh Minhas, conducted the scrutiny of nomination papers submitted by the candidates for the upcoming 18th parliamentary elections and 12 nominations were found valid, officials said.
A total number of 15 candidates, including covering candidates, had filed the nomination papers for Udhampur Lok Sabha seat.
The candidates whose nomination have been found valid include Amit Kumar (Bahujan Samaj Party), Balwan Singh (J&K National Panthers Party), Dr Jitendra Singh (Bharatiya Janata Party), Choudhary Lal Singh (Congress), Manoj Kumar (Ekam Sanatan Bharat Dal), and independents Dr Pankaj Sharma, Rajesh Manchanda, Sachin Gupta, Swarn Veer Singh Jaral, Ghulam Mohd Saroori, Mohd Ali Gujjar and Mehraj Din.
The scrutiny was held in the presence of general observer Dheeraj Kumar, the contesting candidates and the representatives of the political parties.
According to the election notification, the candidates can withdraw their nomination on March 30 in the office of the returning officer. The constituency is scheduled for elections in the first phase of polls to be held on April 19, the officials said.
Dr Jitendra Singh, the two-time MP from Udhampur-Kathua constituency, is aiming for a hat-trick of wins while Congress’ Lal Singh, who also won this seat in 2004 and 2009, is also in the battle for a hat-trick.
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