The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on Sunday, announced three candidates for the vacant Rajya Sabha seats from Jammu and Kashmir. The saffron party will fight for three out of the four RS seats from the union territory. The polls will be held on October 24.
Earlier, the Election Commission of India (ECI) had announced polls for the four Rajya Sabha seats in Jammu and Kashmir on September 24 after more than four years because the UT did not have a Legislative Assembly after February 2021.
Who Are BJP Candidates For J&K Rajya Sabha Elections?
BJP has decided to field its UT president, Sat Pal Sharma, and leaders Rakesh Mahajan and Ghulam Mohammed Mir.
As per IANS, of the four Rajya Sabha seats, the party has an edge on the fourth seat for which the party has fielded Sharma.
According to the electoral college vote division, the BJP has 28 votes while the National Conference (NC) alliance has 24 votes for the fourth RS seat.
Also Read: NC To Contest Rajya Sabha Polls Independently, Announces Candidates For Three J&K Seats
National Conference Candidates For Rajya Sabha Elections
The NC has already announced its three candidates for the three Rajya Sabha seats in which it has an edge over the BJP.
The Jammu and Kashmir NC on Friday announced the names of its candidates for the three seats in the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections. The party has decided to field Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan, Sajad Kichloo and Shammi Oberoi for the seats.
The ruling party in the UT has offered the 4th seat to the Congress to contest.
ECI On J&K Rajya Sabha Elections
In its statement, the ECI had informed that the seats have been vacant since the expiration of the term of office of sitting members.
“All four above-mentioned seats are lying vacant since the expiration of the term of office of sitting members due to non-availability of the required electorate to conduct the said elections at the time of occurrence of said vacancies. Consequent upon the constitution of the State Legislative Assembly of UT of Jammu & Kashmir, there is a requirement for the electorate to conduct the Biennial Elections to the Council of States from UT of Jammu & Kashmir,” the statement read.
The last date for filing nomination papers for the four Rajya Sabha seats is Monday.
(with IANS inputs)