BJP retains Hardeep Puri, Arun Singh, Neeraj Shekhar in RS

Oct 26, 2020
New Delhi: The BJP has named 8 out of 10 candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls in November from Uttar Pradesh and one from Uttarakhand.

Predictably Hardeep Puri, Arun Singh and Neeraj Shekhar been retained from UP.

Union Minister of Urban Development (Independent Charge) Hardeep Singh Puri was almost certain to get renominated. Following Manohar Parrikar’s resignation, who quit as the Defence Minister after becoming the Goa Chief Minister, Puri was elected unopposed in a bypoll to a Rajya Sabha seat from Uttar Pradesh in 2018. His term comes to an end on November 25.

Arun Singh too gets renominated as was being speculated. The BJP leader, who was a General Secretary in Team Amit Shah, has been retained in the new team.

Another renomination is of Neeraj Shekhar. Shekhar, son of former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar, quit his Rajya Sabha seat and left the Samajwadi Party (SP) to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in July last year.

Others named include Haridwar Dubey, Brijlal, Geeta Shakya, BL Verma and Seema Trivedi. They all are being fielded for RS polls from Uttar Pradesh while Naresh Bansal will fight for the lone RS seat from Uttarakhand.

BJP’s Central Election Committee (CEC) has okayed these names, said Arun Singh, who too features in there.

The biennial elections to 11 Rajya Sabha seats from Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand on November 9 are set to change the political dynamics as the BJP is set to gain more seats. The party is inching towards a majority in the Upper House of Parliament along with allies and supporting parties.

As per the current configurations in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, the Samajwadi Party (SP) can win only one seat. The SP will ensure that Ram Gopal Yadav wins that seat.

One possibility in Uttar Pradesh is of the opposition contesting one more seat, depending on the surplus votes available. However, as the opposition is not united, a joint opposition candidate is not likely to be fielded from the state. Hence, in the given scenario, the BJP is set to win the remaining nine seats from Uttar Pradesh. The lone seat from Uttarakhand is set to go into the BJP kitty too.

–IANS