Election date for 24 Rajya Sabha seats fixed, Election Commission will issue notification on June 1

Many veterans are retiring

Elections are to be held on 24 seats in Rajya Sabha from ten states. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh are retiring. Apart from these, Union Ministers Ravneet Singh Bittu and George Kurien are also retiring from the Rajya Sabha. The Election Commission will issue a notification for this on June 1. Earlier, the Election Commission has issued notification for biennial elections. Nominations can be filed till June 8. Nominations will be scrutinized on June 9, June 11 has been fixed as the date for withdrawal of nominations. If necessary, voting will be held on June 18. Voting will take place from 9 am to 4 pm. Rajya Sabha elections will be completed by June 20.

How many MPs are retiring from BJP-Congress?

Among the 22 retiring MPs, 11 from BJP and 4 from Congress are retiring from Rajya Sabha this year. The tenure of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh, Union Ministers George Kurien and Ravneet Singh Bittu is ending. Four seats each are becoming vacant from Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, three seats each will be vacant from Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. One seat each will be vacant from Manipur, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Jharkhand. Apart from this, by-elections can also be held on one seat each from Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.

Why everyone’s eyes are on Rajya Sabha elections

Union Minister of State for Food Processing and Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu is a Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan, his tenure ends on June 21. Meanwhile, Minister of State for Minority Affairs and Fisheries, George Kurien, who is a Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh, is also ending his tenure on June 21. It is believed that in view of the Punjab Assembly elections, the party may again send Ravneet Singh to the Rajya Sabha. Kurien was also brought into the government in view of the Kerala elections. Now it remains to be seen whether BJP sends him to Rajya Sabha again or not.

What will happen to Mallikarjun Kharge?

If we look at the numerical strength, Congress can get three seats in Karnataka. On one of these, the election of the party’s national president Malilkarjun Kharge is considered certain. Whereas in Madhya Pradesh, Congress will have to make efforts to win one seat. Although he has only six surplus votes. Digvijay Singh has refused to go to Rajya Sabha again. BJP may get two seats in the state and Congress may get one. Union Minister of State George Kurien is also in the race from BJP. In Rajasthan, BJP may get two seats and Congress may get one seat. The names of Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu are running from BJP’s side and the names of former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and party spokesperson Pawan Kheda are running from Congress’ side.

Congress power out in Gujarat

Congress may face a big setback in Gujarat. At present, Congress has only one member in 11 Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat. Shakti Singh Gohil has been the leader of opposition in the Legislative Assembly. He is retiring on June 21. At present, 46 votes are required to win a seat whereas Congress has only 12 MLAs, which means none of its candidates from Gujarat can win in the Rajya Sabha elections. This will be the first time that Congress will not have any member in the Rajya Sabha from an important state like Gujarat. However, Congress’s hopes in Jharkhand rest on the ruling JMM. The party hopes that JMM will give this seat to Congress. NDA’s position is likely to remain the same in this election. However, TDP’s seats may increase. BJP currently has 113 MPs in the Rajya Sabha and NDA has 148 MPs. After this round of elections, BJP’s numbers will be more or less around this.