In a setback to comedian Shyam Rangeela’s endeavour to contest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Varanasi, the Election Commission rejected his election affidavit on Thursday, May 15.
The comic, who said he was denied permission to submit his nomination papers for the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency for three days, finally managed to submit it on Tuesday, May 14.
The seat in Uttar Pradesh is represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has been winning it since 2014.
A beaming Shyam Rangeela came out of the district magistrate’s office after submission with a victory sigh. Speaking to reporters, he said, “Democracy has won today. Its 3 pm now and wait and watch how many candidates will come forward to file their nominations. And all this is because of the power of social media. I thank the Election Commission of India for making this possible.”
Thanking the social media for its support, his official X post read, “Your good wishes and support gave me strength, and today, albeit late, the nomination was done. After completing all the documentation, procedures and overcoming other hurdles, we are now on the verge of becoming an option for the people of Varanasi, Just wait for two-three more days, let the symbol arrive, we will fight with full strength, with your support.”
Shyam Rangeela’s background
Rangeela, who gained popularity for his uncanny ability to mimic the Prime Minister’s mannerisms and speech, has decided to take his political satire to the next level by directly challenging Modi in the upcoming elections.
In 2017, Shyam Rangeela’s flawless impersonations of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the popular television show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge catapulted him to fame. His videos mimicking the Prime Minister’s mannerisms and speech patterns went viral on social media, making him an overnight star. Rangeela’s repertoire also included impressions of other political figures like former Congress president Rahul Gandhi.
He had joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Rajasthan in 2022.
Prior to joining AAP, Rangeela had expressed disappointment on Twitter that he was unable to appear on TV shows, suggesting that people “feared” PM Modi and questioned whether his comedic mimicry was considered a “crime”.
In 2017, he was allegedly targeted by a television channel for his Modi mimicry act. According to the reports, Rangeela was invited by the channel to perform his Modi mimicry act, but just a few days before the scheduled telecast, he was told that his part was being dropped.
The channel asked him to prepare something else, suggesting he could mimic Rahul Gandhi instead, but later asked him not to mimic any political figure.
Rangeela expressed his confusion over the channel’s decision, stating that he does not believe Prime Minister Modi has a problem with people making fun of him. However, he believes that the Prime Minister’s followers have an issue with such mimicry acts.
