In another blow to Congress after the Surat fiasco, its Lok Sabha candidate from the Indore constituency, Akshay Kanti Bam, withdrew his nomination on Monday, ahead of the May 13 polling, amid indications that he is headed to the Bharatiya Janata Party camp.

After Bam opted out of the race, the Congress in Delhi said there was a "threat to democracy".

Interestingly, the decision of Bam comes five days after a court in Indore had asked for adding a 307 (attempt to murder) charge in a 2007 case related to a land dispute against him, his father and others.

The BJP marked its first victory in Lok Sabha polls last week from the Surat seat in Gujarat after the nomination form of the Congress' candidate Nilesh Kumbhani was rejected over discrepancies and other contestants also opted out of the race, which ensured BJP nominee Mukesh Dalal getting a walkover.

Indore's Collector Ashish Singh verified Bam's withdrawal of nomination, a process that was documented via videography to uphold transparency. Today was the last day of withdrawal of nominations.

"Three candidates, including Congress' Bam, withdrew their nominations today as per the due procedure. The process has also been videographed," Singh said.

A photograph released by the BJP on social media captured Bam's presence alongside MP Deputy Chief Minister Jagdish Devda, state cabinet minister Kailash Vijayvargiya, and other prominent party figures, indicating his imminent move to the BJP camp.

"Congress Lok Sabha candidate from Indore Akshay Kanti Bam is welcome to the BJP under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party national president JP Nadda, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and state President VD Sharma," Vijayvargiya said.

Accompanied by local BJP MLA Ramesh Mendola, Bam formally withdrew his candidacy at the collector's office, opting not to engage with questions from the press on his way out.

Mendola's association with Vijayvargiya underscored the political dynamics at play, with the latter extending a warm invitation to Bam to join the BJP ranks under the leadership of top party figures.

Sources within the BJP confirmed Bam's intention to join their ranks, marking a strategic move on the last day for withdrawal of nominations in the Indore Lok Sabha seat, where elections are slated for May 13.

A court in Indore five days back asked for an addition of 307 (attempt to murder) charge in a 2007 case related to the land dispute against Bam, his father and others.

The police had registered a case in 2007 under sections 294 (using bad words), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code but an individual named Yunis Patel claimed that a gunshot from a .12 bore had been fired at him allegedly at the instance of Bam's father.

After 17 years, Patel moved a first class magistrate court on April 5 with an application seeking directions for the police to include section 307, which was accepted on April 24.

The decision of Bam triggered an angry reaction from the Congress which said there is a "threat to democracy" and wondered if there is a free and fair poll when the Election Commission "looks the other way" while candidate after candidate is being "intimidated".

Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said in the national capital, "The gentleman in question has multiple universities and colleges in the state that we spoke about. One of the charges slapped against him was of murder. It is not natural, normal or ordinary that somebody just withdraws their candidature and joins the BJP." "When we say the democracy of India is under threat, this is the threat we speak about. The threat is to coax candidates, to put pressure on them to withdraw, to intimidate them, to intimidate their proposers and that is what is happening," she alleged at a press conference at the AICC headquarters in Delhi.

Meanwhile, police presence was seen outside Bam's residence in Patrakar Colony as local Congress members gathered, reacting to the unexpected turn of events.

The decision to field Bam, a political newcomer who has not contested any elections so far, against incumbent BJP MP Shankar Lalwani in the stronghold constituency of Indore marked a strategic move by the Congress amidst a landscape where party members have been defecting to the BJP fold.

Indore, boasting the largest voter constituency in Madhya Pradesh, holds significant electoral sway with 25.13 lakh electors, with the BJP expressing confidence in securing victory by a substantial margin of eight lakh votes this election cycle.

Indore City Congress unit working president Devendra Yadav expressed displeasure over the party leadership giving a ticket to Bam in the first place by ignoring grassroots workers.

"I had sought an election ticket from Indore, but many grassroots workers of the Congress like me were ignored and the ticket was given to Bam due to his money power," Yadav said.

The Congress leader maintained he had anticipated the last-minute withdrawal of nomination by Bam.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.