BJP suspends Nilgiris (SC) LS seat candidate

CHENNAI: In a disciplinary action, BJP today suspended its Lok Sabha candidate for Nilgiris (SC) seat S Gurumurthy for failing to submit mandatory forms during his nomination.

BJP state unit president Pon. Radhakrishnan announced that besides Gurumurthy, his agent Varadarajan has also been placed under suspension, following a report by a three-member committee headed by senior leader K N Lakshmanan.

"BJP lost the opportunity to contest from Nilgiris (SC) due to Gurumurthy's failure to submit the documents relating to symbol allotment on time.... Gurumurthy and Varadarajan are (therefore) suspended from the party," he said in a statement.

The Disciplinary Committee will submit the final report to the party high command, "based on which further action will be initiated," he said.

Gurumurthy had created creating a flutter in party circles following rejection of his nomination papers for not submitting mandatory A and B forms earlier.

Having already contested and lost the same seat in 2009, Gurumurthy was for a second time pitted against DMK's A Raja, and his nomination papers were rejected for want of filing the mandatory forms. AIADMK has fielded C Gopalakrishnan and polls were held on April 24.

Following rejection of Gurumurthy's papers, the party's tally of contesting seats came down from eight to seven, causing a furore, and the party supporters sought action against him.