The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered its first win in the Lok Sabha elections after its candidate from Gujarat's Surat constituency, Mukesh Dalal, was elected unopposed. While the nomination of the Congress candidate was rejected, the remaining eight nominees withdrew.
Here are five key facts about Mukesh Dalal:
1. Born on May 8, 1961, in Surat, Mukesh Dalal belongs to the Modh Vanik trader community. He holds bachelor's degrees in commerce and law and has also done a Master's in Business Administration. He once served as the chairman of the Surat People's Cooperative Bank Limited.
2. Mr Dalal joined the BJP in 1981. Initially, he was involved with the BJP Yuva Morcha on the state level and later became an executive member of the party's Surat unit .
3. In 2005, he was elected as a corporator of the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) from the Adajan-Pal-Palanpor area. Mr Dalal was a corporator from 2005 to 2020.
4. The BJP nominated Mukesh Dalal from the Surat Lok Sabha seat in the 2024 polls, replacing its two-time MP Darshana Jardosh. Surat is a prestigious seat in Gujarat which has sent stalwarts like Morarji Desai and Kashiram Rana to Parliament.
5. Mr Dalal is also the general secretary of the BJP's Surat city unit and a committee member of the Surat District Cricket Association (SDCA).
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