The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) declared the names of its four candidates while the Congress announced the name of one candidate on Wednesday for the five Rajya Sabha seats that fell vacant from Madhya Pradesh.
The BJP candidates for the Rajya Sabha from MP include Union minister from Tamil Nadu, L Murugan, MP BJP Women’s Wing President Maya Naroliya, Ujjain’s Valmiki Dham Ashram Peethadheeshwar, Yogi Sant Umesh Nath Maharaj and BJP Kisan morcha national vice president and senior farmer leader from Mandsaur, Bansilal Gurjar.
The Congress has named its senior OBC leader from Gwalior, Ashok Singh, as Rajya Sabha candidate. Singh had unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha polls in the past.
Present Congress Rajya Sabha member Rajmani Patel’s tenure is ending and since he also belongs to the OBC category, the party has named another senior OBC leader in Ashok Singh to replace Patel.
On the other hand, the tenures of current BJP Rajya Sabha members from Madhya Pradesh, Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and L Murugan and Ajay Pratap Singh and Kailash Soni, are also ending and the BJP has named four candidates on the seats.
Union Minister of State for Broadcasting, Fisheries, and Animal Husbandry L Murugan has been nominated by the BJP for another term in the upper house of parliament from Madhya Pradesh. The party’s other three candidates have been nominated for the first time.
The BJP has 163 seats in the Madhya Pradesh State Assembly while the Congress has 66 out of the 230 seats, with one seat with the Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP). Given the numbers, it is almost certain that the BJP will get the four seats and the Congress will get one seat from Madhya Pradesh.