Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar with NDA nominees Upendra Kushwaha and Manan Kumar Mishra in Patna on August 21, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Rashtriya Lok Morcha national president Upendra Kushwaha and BJP leader Manan Kumar Mishra on Wednesday filed the nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha byelections as the candidates of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha were present on the occasion here, along with other senior leaders of the NDA. Mr. Kushwaha, a former Union Minister, had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha election but faced defeat whereas Mr. Mishra is senior advocate in the Supreme Court and chairman of the Bar Council of India (BCI).
Both NDA nominees are set to be elected unopposed as the Opposition has not fielded any candidates.
Seats vacant after LS poll
Two Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar had fallen vacant after the Lok Sabha election when Misa Bharti of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Vivek Thakur of the BJP became members of the Lower House.
The BJP central leadership declared the candidature of Mr. Mishra on Tuesday, while Mr. Kushwahaโs name was announced on July 2 itself.
Mr. Mishra, a native of Gopalganj, started his career as an advocate in the Patna High Court. He has been practising in the Supreme Court since 2009.
The decision to nominate Mr. Kushwaha, despite his electoral loss in the Lok Sabha election, is said to have been taken to keep the Kushwaha community with the NDA. Kushwaha community is the second largest bloc among the OBCs after Yadavs in Bihar. He had finished a distant third when he contested the Lok Sabha election from Karakat seat in Bihar.
Mr. Mishra is a Brahmin, the traditional vote bank of the BJP.
Wednesday was the last date for filing the nomination papers. Bypolls for 12 Rajya Sabha seats across the country will take place on September 3.
