Comedian Shyam Rangeela, famed for his mimicry of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, filed his nomination against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi on Tuesday. This comes after he had raised allegations of obstruction in filing his nomination papers to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections from the Varanasi constituency against the Prime Minister himself. Despite attempting to file papers since Friday, May 10, Rangeela claimed he was barred from entering the magistrate's office on Tuesday, coinciding with Prime Minister Modi's submission of nomination papers for the prestigious seat. 






Earlier in an X post, Rangeela said, "They can reject my papers. But at least, take the documents". 










The incident occurred on Tuesday, May 14, the final day for nomination filling for the Varanasi seat, scheduled for polling in the seventh and last phase of the Lok Sabha elections on June 1. 


Prime Minister Modi, vying for a third term from Varanasi, secured the seat with a margin of nearly 4.8 Lakh votes in the 2019 elections. In 2014, he triumphed by a margin of 3.72 Lakh votes. 


Prior to PM Modi, approximately 14 persons submitted their nomination forms for the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency, including candidates from mainstream political parties and independents. Among them are Congress candidate Ajai Rai and Bahujan Samajwadi Party's (BSP) Athar Ali Lari. 


The Congress Party weighed in on the controversy, with leader Surendra Rajput stating to the news agency PTI, "Everyone is free to file a nomination including PM Modi. However, other people are not allowed to file their nominations from the constituency. A YouTuber named (Shyam) Rangeela, who wished to file a nomination from Varanasi, isn’t getting nomination papers from the administration. Why PM Modi is afraid of people? Let them contest against you". 


READ | PM Files Nomination For Varanasi Lok Sabha Seat


All About Shyam Rangeela


Shyam Rangeela, hailing from Rajasthan's Hanumangarh, gained prominence for his mimicry prowess, particularly of political figures. His mimicry act of PM Modi garnered widespread attention in 2017, catapulting him to social media stardom. 


Rangeela, aged 29, announced his aspiration to contest against PM Modi in Varanasi on May 1. 


Apart from PM Modi, Rangeela has imitated other political figures, including Rahul Gandhi, in his videos.