Former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi has been elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan. The 77-year-old politician filed her nomination from Jaipur, a constituency previously held by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, adding an element of surprise. The BJP interpreted this transition as an admission of defeat in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
This marks a significant juncture in Sonia Gandhi”s political journey, as she embarks on her first term in the Upper House after serving five terms as a Lok Sabha MP, representing Raebareli since 2006. She had won the seat even in 2019, when the Congress performance was at its all-time low winning only one out of 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh. Rahul Gandhi also lost the other family turf of Amethi to the BJP”s Smriti Irani.
Sonia Gandhi”s foray into the Rajya Sabha mirrors a familial legacy, following in the footsteps of her mother-in-law, the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who graced the Upper House from August 1964 to February 1967.
BJP candidates Chunnilal Garasiya and Madan Rathore were also elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan on Tuesday, the last day for withdrawing nominations. The Congress now has six out of the 10 Rajya Sabha seats in Rajasthan, and the BJP is holding the remaining four.
The tenure of Rajya Sabha members Manmohan Singh and Bhupendra Yadav is drawing to a close on April 3. The third seat fell vacant after the BJP MP Kirodi Lal Meena resigned from the House in December after being elected MLA.
The voting for Rajya Sabha elections is scheduled for February 27 and counting will take place at 5 pm on the same day. Other leaders retiring in this batch are RJD leader Manoj Jha, AAP leader Sanjay Singh, Dr Abhishek Manu Singhvi from the Congress, and Amar Patnaik of the BJD.
The four nominated MPs whose terms are concluding are Mahesh Jethmalani, Rakesh Sinha, Sonal Mansingh, and Ram Shakal.
At present, the BJP holds 94 seats in Rajya Sabha, followed by the Congress with 30 seats. Other significant parties include TMC with 13 seats, DMK and AAP with 10 seats each, and the YSRCP and BJD with nine seats each. Meanwhile, K Chandrashekar Rao’s BRS has seven MPs, the RJD has six Rajya Sabha MPs, and the JDU and CPM have five MPs each.
The effective strength of the Rajya Sabha currently stands at 239, with four seats from Jammu and Kashmir and two of the 12 nominated seats remaining vacant.
