Elections have been announced for 12 seats of Rajya Sabha. According to the Election Commission, voting will be held on 10 seats in Uttar Pradesh, one in Uttarakhand and one in West Bengal on October 16. Of these, regular elections will be held on 11 seats in UP and Uttarakhand, while by-elections will be held on one seat in West Bengal.
According to the Election Commission's schedule, notification will be issued on September 29 and nominations can be filed till October 6. Nomination papers will be scrutinized on 7th October and names can be withdrawn till 9th October. If necessary, voting will be held on October 16 from 9 am to 4 pm and counting of votes will begin at 5 pm on the same day.
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What is the picture in Uttar Pradesh?
According to the current assembly numbers, the BJP-led NDA is in a position to win 7 seats in Uttar Pradesh, while the Samajwadi Party (SP) can win two seats. The election of 10 seats of Uttar Pradesh is the most discussed. BJP has 256 MLAs and SP has 101 MLAs in the 403-member assembly. There are 40 more MLAs from NDA allies. For one Rajya Sabha seat, votes of about 36 MLAs will be required. In such a situation, the mathematics of initial seats is quite clear but the final equation can change due to the names of the candidates and the stance of other parties.
Of the 10 Rajya Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, currently 8 are held by BJP, one by SP and one by BSP. The tenure of nine members will end on November 25, while one seat has already become vacant after the resignation of BJP MP Dinesh Sharma. Sharma had resigned from the Rajya Sabha after he was made the Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar.
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Based on the current assembly numbers, the BJP-led NDA is in a position to win eight seats. Whereas SP has the required numbers to win two seats. Because of this, the main focus will be on the equation of remaining seats and possible candidates.
Challenge to save seat before BSP
A big question of the elections is regarding BSP's Rajya Sabha presence. The current assembly strength of the party is not such that it can win a seat on its own. The tenure of BSP's Rajya Sabha MP is also ending in November. Other prominent members from UP who have completed their tenure include Union ministers Hardeep Singh Puri, Arun Singh, Geeta, Neeraj Shekhar, Brijlal, BL Verma, Seema and SP's Ram Gopal Yadav.
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What is the picture in Uttarakhand and Bengal?
The tenure of BJP MP Naresh Bansal on a Rajya Sabha seat from Uttarakhand is ending. BJP has majority in the state assembly, hence based on the current numbers the equation of this seat is also clear. By-election will be held on a vacant seat in West Bengal. This seat has become vacant after the resignation of Rukmini Malik of Trinamool Congress. The contest for this seat is also considered important amid the changed political equation after the assembly elections 2026.