Surat presents first lotus to Modi

India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party got its first seat in the new Lok Sabha when its candidate Mukesh Dalal in the Surat constituency in Gujarat state was declared elected unopposed.

Eight other candidates, mostly independents, withdrew their nomination papers and Congress candidates' nominations were rejected, paving the way for Dalal's victory.

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"Surat has presented the first Lotus to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I congratulate our candidate for the Surat Lok Sabha seat Mukesh Dalal for getting elected unopposed," BJP Gujarat President CR Paatil posted on X.

Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said they would soon announce Dalal's win in the election.

"As all the eight candidates who had successfully filed their nomination for the Surat Lok Sabha seat have withdrawn their candidature, Dalal has been elected unopposed. We will soon announce his win," he said.

On Sunday, the nomination papers of Congress' Surat Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani were rejected after his three proposers had submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming the signatures on them were not theirs. The nomination form of Suresh Padsala, the Congress's substitute candidate from Surat was also invalidated.

Pardhi said their nomination forms were rejected after prima facie discrepancy was found in the signatures of the proposers and they did not appear to be genuine.

India is now in the midst of nearly six-week elections for choosing representatives to 543 seats in Lok Sabha. The first phase of polling was held on Friday and the second round is scheduled for April 26.

The last phase is billed for June 1. Vote counting and results will be declared on June 4.