Minister Rajen offers to skip polls iff affidavit found false
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, February 12 2022: Education Minister Sorokhaibam Rajen has announced that he will resign from his candidacy for the ensuing 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly Election if the information provided in the affidavit submitted along with his nomination paper were found to be incorrect.

Addressing a press meet held at Lamsang BJP Mandal office on Saturday, Rajen, who is also the BJP candidate in Lamsang AC, refuted the allegations made by INC candidate Manibabu Likmabam, JD (U) candidate Khundrakpam Kanba, Independent candidate Arambam Karamjit and NPP candidate Pukhrambam Sumati, as attempts to influence the voters who are supporting him.

He said that he filed the nomination according to the AB form issued by ECI to him as a candidate of BJP.

He continued: "I filed the requisite affidavits as required during submission of my nomination paper.

All of the documents were properly checked by the RO concerned, after which my nomination paper was accepted.

However, candidates Sumati and Manibabu levelled charges against me regarding my education qualification as a BA passed.

"When I was pursuing my BA, the previously two-year course was upgraded to a three-year course and I appeared for the examination in 1992.In my affidavit, I mentioned the year of passing graduation of the two-year course as 1988.The authenticity of this is not be decided through the media.

After Prof Ng Nimai, the MU Controller of Examinations, informed that my certificates were lost, I filed an FIR on February 3 and got duplicates including my matriculation certificate from BSEM.

All of these can be checked through MU and relevant offices," he said, while declaring that he is ready to withdraw his candidacy if any of the information provided in the affidavits were found incorrect.

Contending that his date of birth mentioned in the nomination is the same as indicated in his matriculation certificate, Rajen said that just because one has a mouth, he/she must not make baseless statements.

He questioned if the MU and BSEM, as issuing authorities, are in the wrong, or whether the recipients are wrong for receiving the certificates.

"In this age of internet, people should not believe such baseless statements.

The information given in the nomination papers cannot be rectified at will.

It is uncivilised of people who have come forward to serve the people of the constituency to speak in such ways, without having a shred of the dignity or quality of an educated leader," he remarked.

Rajen also reacted to the charges of leaving some of columns in the affidavit blank, stating that if he had objected to the discrepancies in the affidavits of other candidates on the day of the scrutiny, their nomination papers could have been rejected.

However, he did not say anything as he did not want to win uncontested, and believes that election is all about public mandate.

"Since the RO accepted their nomination papers despite the errors, they should be ready to face the legal fight that is coming their way soon.

For me, I have contested the elections six times and the upcoming polls is the seventh time.

I don't even have a proposer this time", the education minister said, while informing that he would be filing a defamation suit against Likmabam Manibabu.

He further informed that he would file a complaint to ECI regarding the discrepancies in the affidavits of other candidates, while adding that a letter requesting rejection of their candidacy has already been forwarded to ECI.

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