Guwahati, March 28: The Congress party has announced it will challenge the Election Commission’s (EC) decision to reject the nomination of its Barpeta candidate, Mahananda Sarkar, in court. Senior Congress leader and General Secretary in charge of Assam, Jitendra Singh, termed the rejection a “technical error” that should not have disqualified the candidate.

The nomination was voided after scrutiny revealed that Form A, a mandatory document for party-backed candidates, did not bear the required signature of the authorized party leader. Singh alleged that the party attempted to submit corrected forms during the scrutiny process but was blocked by the EC, which he claimed acted like a “karyakarta” (political worker) rather than a neutral body.

“There was a mistake at some level, but rules allow for the rectification of technical errors during scrutiny,” Singh stated, citing Supreme Court precedents.

With Sarkar out of the race, the Barpeta seat previously held by Congress is now primarily a contest between BJP ally Asom Gana Parishad’s (AGP) Dipak Kumar Das and two Independent candidates. The Congress has warned it may seek an annulment of the election in the constituency if legal remedies are not met. Polling for the 126-member assembly is scheduled for April 9, with results on May 4.