In a shocking twist, Mehak Rajput, a Congress worker for years, has decided to contest the Punjab municipal corporation elections with her pet dog, Jimmy, as the candidate. Mehak, visibly upset over being denied a ticket from Ward 38, reached the SDM-1 office in Amritsar on Wednesday to file Jimmy’s nomination papers.
Expressing her discontent, Mehak said, “If the administration does not accept my dog’s nomination, I will contest the election as an independent candidate. This is my way of showing my frustration with the party’s disregard for my work and loyalty over the past two decades.”
Mehak further said, “I wanted to protest through this move against the arbitrary decision-making by the Congress party. Loyalty and dedication should form the core of leadership in my ward.” Knowing full well that animals cannot file legal nominations, she did it anyway, and now she’s been campaigning for Jimmy on social media to get people talking about her situation.
The municipal elections in Punjab will be held on December 21 in five major cities—Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Phagwara, and Patiala—covering a voter base of 37.32 lakh, including 19.50 lakh men and 17 lakh women. Voting hours this year have been extended from 7 AM to 4 PM, which gives an extra hour of voting compared to previous elections.
Thus, until date, 170 nominations have already been filed at the state level. On the other hand, leaders from the Congress and the BJP have leveled allegations about delays in giving the NOCs. Further, they allege that sometimes officials are unavailable at the office. The Election Commission, in return, assures that NOCs could be treated as affidavits if needed for making a nomination.
The elections will send 381 members to municipal corporations and 598 members to municipal councils. Heavy security arrangements have been made wherein each polling station has been allocated three personnel and a complete ban on the use of weapons in these elections until the election process ends has been strictly enforced. District authorities have been ordered to collect arms from the license holders and enforce law and order during polls.
Mehak Rajput’s unorthodox protest has garnered extensive public and media attention, making it a hot issue at this time ahead of elections. Whether Jimmy’s name is accepted or not, the underlying factor is that Mehak showed a strong intent to present her case and her political voice.