Sonia, Nadda and Ashok among 41 elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha

On Tuesday, a total of 41 candidates secured uncontested victories to the Rajya Sabha (RS), as elections for 15 vacancies are scheduled to take place on February 27 - ten in Uttar Pradesh, four in Karnataka, and one in Himachal Pradesh.

Among the 41 candidates elected unopposed to the RS on Tuesday were Congress parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president J P Nadda, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan. This marked the last date for the withdrawal of nominations.

The elections were announced to fill 56 vacancies that will arise by April 3. Notably, the BJP fielded Harsh Mahajan against Congress’ Abhishek Manu Singhvi for the lone vacancy in Himachal Pradesh. Despite the Congress' strength in the Himachal assembly, the BJP leadership believes that internal "discontent" within the ruling party could aid its candidate's chances of victory.

In Uttar Pradesh, where there are 10 vacancies, the BJP has nominated eight candidates compared to the Samajwadi Party’s three. In Karnataka, with four vacancies, the Congress is guaranteed two seats while the BJP has fielded two candidates, necessitating voting.

Gandhi and Nadda secured uncontested victories from Rajasthan and Gujarat, respectively. Vaishnaw won unopposed, with the support of the Biju Janata Dal, from Odisha. Chavan, who recently joined the BJP after quitting the Congress, was elected from Maharashtra.

In Gujarat, besides Nadda, the BJP’s three candidates won unopposed, as did its two candidates from Rajasthan. There were four vacancies in Gujarat, and three each in Rajasthan and Odisha.

The BJD secured two seats in Odisha, while the BJP’s Vaishnaw won the third seat. In Madhya Pradesh, five candidates were elected unopposed, four from the BJP, including Union minister L Murugan, and one from the Congress.

Of the 41 elected unopposed, the BJP won 20, the Congress six, Trinamool Congress four, YSR Congress Party three, Rashtriya Janata Dal and BJD two each, and the Nationalist Congress Party, Shiv Sena, Janata Dal (United), and Bharat Rashtra Samithi one each.