Actor threatens legal action against Cong for using his image illegally to target K'taka BJP govt
Bengaluru, Sep 23: Appalled at his image being used "illegally" by the Congress for campaign against the BJP government in Karnataka, without his consent, actor Akhil Iyer on Friday threatened to initiate legal action.
Clarifying that he has nothing to do with the Congress' campaign, he has asked the party and its leaders Rahul Gandhi and Siddaramaiah to look into it.
"I am appalled to see that my face is being used illegally and without my consent for "40% Sarkara" - an @INCIndia campaign that i have nothing to do with. I will be taking legal action against this. @RahulGandhi @siddaramaiah @INCKarnataka request you to please look into this," Iyer tweeted.
The actor has shared a poster with his image on an account named '40% sarkara' (40 per cent government), which says "The gluttony of 40% Sarkara has robbed over 54,000 youths of a career."
The poster is part of the Congress' campaign against Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai-led BJP government in Karnataka on the issue of corruption, following, 40 per cent commission charge by the state contractors' association in public works.
Congress sources said the post has been removed following the tweet and it is being looked into internally as to how it was posted.
The actor who has appeared in some of the TV commercials, has acted in H.I.T the first case starring Rajkummar Rao and a couple of other movies.
I am appalled to see that my face is being used illegally and without my consent for "40% Sarkara" - an @INCIndia campaign that i have nothing to do with.
— Akhil Iyer (@akhiliy) September 23, 2022
I will be taking legal action against this.@RahulGandhi @siddaramaiah @INCKarnataka request you to please look into this pic.twitter.com/y7LZ9wRXW9
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Surat LS candidate Nilesh Kumbhani whose nomination form was rejected suspended from Congress
Ahmedabad, Apr 25: The Gujarat Congress on Friday suspended from the party for six years its Surat Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected over discrepancies leading to the BJP's Mukesh Dalal getting elected unopposed.
A statement from the Congress said the party's disciplinary committee decided to suspend Kumbhani after thorough discussion, adding it had come to the conclusion that the nomination form was rejected due to gross negligence on his part or "in connivance with the BJP".
"To be fair to you we have given time to you to explain your case but instead of coming before the party disciplinary committee you have gone incommunicado. After your form was rejected by the authorities, BJP went ahead and got form of other eight candidates withdrawn. This has deprived people of Surat their voting rights," the Congress disciplinary committee headed by Balu Patel said.
"People of Surat and party workers have become very angry due to your action and are expressing their anger in different ways. The Congress party has decided to suspend you for six years from the party," the press note said.
Kumbhani's nomination form was rejected on April 21 after his three proposers submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming the signatures on the document was not theirs.
The nomination form of Suresh Padsala, the Congress' substitute candidate from Surat, was also invalidated on the same grounds.
In his order, Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said the three nomination forms submitted by Kumbhani and Padsala were rejected after prima facie discrepancy was found in the signatures of the proposers and they did not appear to be genuine.
Kumbhani, a former corporator from Surat, had unsuccessfully fought the 2022 Assembly polls from Kamrej there.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Mukesh Dalal was elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency on April 22 after all other nominees, including one from BSP, withdrew from the fray one by one on the last day of withdrawing papers.
