Congress Fields Ketan Dahyabhai Patel From Daman and Diu Constituency (Photo on X Indian Youth Congress @IYC)

Congress nominated the party’s Daman and Diu president Ketan Dahyabhai Patel from the Daman and Diu constituency when it announced the second list of candidates for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Mr Ketan Patel had earlier claimed that Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi could be the potential candidate from the constituency.

Daman and Diu constituency comes under the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. BJP”s Lalubhai Patel has been representing the seat since 2009 after winning back from Congress’ two-term MP Dahyabhai Patel, father of the Congress candidate Ketan Patel. Notably, the incumbent BJP MP’s vote share has significantly reduced over the past decades. The BJP has fielded Lalubhai Patel again for the fourth time when it announced the first list of candidates. Mr Ketan Patel had been the runner-up in the 2014 and 19 Lok Sabha elections and was defeated by the BJP”s Lalubhai Patel.

In 2017, the Central Bureau of Investigation conducted a raid at the premises of Ketan Dahyabhai Patel following a BJP leader who wrote to the central government that the Congress leader was amassing wealth more than his sources of income. In 2009, during Ketan Patel’s father Dahyabhai Patel’s term as an MP, Mr Ketal Patel had come under attack for allegedly setting up a hotel worth Rs 350 crore along with a casino. He has also several criminal cases registered against him.

In 2018, Mr Ketan Patel was arrested for allegedly extorting money from a Daman-based company. Another case is regarding a fake sticker of Home Ministry he had placed in his vehicle to misuse and carry out anti-national activities, Business Today reported quoting Deputy Inspector General of Police VK Singh.