Rajya Sabha polls for 24 seats on June 18; NDA eyes stronger Upper House numbers

BIennial elections to occupy 24 Rajya Sabha seats crossways 10 states testament be held on June 18, the Election charge proclaimed on Friday, inaugurating a poll cycle where the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will look to inch closer towards the two-thirds majority mark in the Upper House.The poll panel also announced by-elections for one seat each in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.Former prime minister HD Deve Gowda, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Union ministers George Kurien and Ravneet Singh Bittu are among the Rajya Sabha members whose terms are ending in June.The last date for filling nominations is June 8 and the results will be declared on June 18. The Bharatiya Janata Party is the single-largest party with 113 members (including five nominated MPs) and the NDA is now at 149 in the 245-member House.Of the 24 seats falling vacant, the BJP held 12, the Congress four, the Telugu Desam Party one and the YSR Congress three.One seat that fell vacant due to the demise of former Jharkhand chief minister Shibu Soren will also go to the polls as will a seat each in Meghalaya, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur.The Rajya Sabha elections will be held in four seats each in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Karnataka, three seats each in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, two seats in Jharkhand and one seat each in Manipur, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram.In Maharashtra, the vacancy arose after deputy chief minister Sunetra Pawar resigned from the Rajya Sabha following her victory in the Baramati assembly by-poll. In Tamil Nadu, the vacancy arose after the resignation of C Ve Shanmugam of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) following his election to the state assembly.The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam could make its debut in the Upper House from the state or give the seat to the Congress, its ally.In Andhra Pradesh, where the TDP, a member of the NDA is in power, the ruling dispensation is expected to get all four seats.The members retiring from Andhra Pradesh include YSRCP’s Parimal Nathwani, Subhash Chandra Bose Pilli and Ayodhya Rami Reddy and TDP’s Sana Sathish Babu. The TDP now expects to win three of these four seats and the fourth is likely to go to the BJP or the Jana Sena, which is also a member of the NDA. People aware of the details said the TDP might favour the Jana Sena for the fourth seat.In Karnataka, the Congress is expecting gains, as it is poised to increase its tally from one to three. Of the four seats, the BJP, which has tied up with the Janata Dal Secular, is expecting one. The retiring members include Kharge, who is also the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, JD(S) patriarch Deve Gowda and BJP’s Iranna Kadadi and Narayana Koragappa. Kharge is expected to be renominated while discussions are on for the remaining two seats, said people aware of the details.The BJP will get all four seats falling vacant in Gujarat. The members whose terms end include BJP’s Ramilaben Becharbhai Bara, Rambhai Mokariya and Narhari Amin and Congress’s Shaktisinh Gohil.In Jharkhand, the Congress is expecting to win one of the two seats falling vacant. The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha will retain the seat that fell vacant on the passing of party founder Shibu Soren.The Congress is also expecting to retain a seat in Rajasthan, where three members, including Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu, BJP’s Rajendra Gehlot and Congress’s Neeraj Dangi, are retiring.In Madhya Pradesh the Congress is hoping to retain one of the three seats falling vacant. The retirees include Union minister of state George Kurien, BJP’s Sumer Singh Solanki and Congress’s Digvijaya Singh. Singh has already announced that he will not seek re-election.NDA member National People’s Party (NPP) is set to retain its single seat in Meghalaya, while the Mizoram People’s Movement is likely to win the lone seat in Mizoram. Earlier, the Mizoram National Front held the seat. The BJP is likely to retain seats in Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur.