New Delhi: The grand old Congress party announced on Wednesday the first list of candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha Biennial Elections to be held in various states.
According to an official release from the All India Congress Committee (AICC), “Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has approved the candidature of Sonia Gandhi from Rajasthan and Dr. Akhilesh Prasad Singh from Bihar.”
Additionally, Abhishek Manu Singhvi has been fielded from Himachal Pradesh and Chandrakant Handore from Maharashtra.
Sonia Gandhi, who filed her nomination on Wednesday is the Chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party, and has been repeatedly elected to Lok Sabha from Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh. The move to file nominations for Rajya Sabha comes ahead of Lok Sabha polls expected to be held in April-May this year. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who was last elected to Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan, is retiring in April this year.
Akhilesh Prasad Singh was he was elected to Rajya Sabha from Bihar in 2018. He was appointed Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee President on 5th December 2022.
Abhishek Manu Singhvi is a senior advocate and a current Member of the Rajya Sabha representing West Bengal. He is also a spokesperson for the Congress.
Chandrakant Handore had represented Chembur in 12th Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. In February 2021, Handore was appointed as a Working President of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee. He is a former cabinet minister for Social Justice of the Government of Maharashtra. He was elected Mayor of Mumbai for the period 1992 to 1993.
The last day of filing nomination papers in February 15. The term for Rajya Sabha MPs is six years and elections are held after every two years for 33 per cent of the seats. Currently, the Rajya Sabha has a strength of 245 members.
Out of the total 245 members, out of which 233 are representatives of the States and Union territories of Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir (w.e.f. 31.10. 2019) and 12 are nominated by the President.
Based on population, each state is allocated a certain number of candidates in the Upper House.Members of the state legislative assemblies choose Rajya Sabha members through an indirect election system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote.
The Election Commission has scheduled the Rajya Sabha elections for 15 states, including Uttar Pradesh, for February 27.
Voting will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on this date, with the deadline for nominations set for February 15.
The results of the elections will be announced on the same day, February 27.
The Election Commission has announced the biennial Rajya Sabha polls on February 27 for 56 seats, as the tenure of incumbents ends in April.