New Delhi, Mar 23: Voting for polls to the Upper House of Parliament - Rajya Sabha - which will
have 58 vacancies next month got underway on Friday across six states including
BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh where there is an unusual excitement after talks about
cross voting.
In UP, the BJP which can get eight candidates
elected easily based on its strength in the state assembly, has added to the
excitement and raised the stakes by fielding a ninth candidate.
For the 58 Rajya Sabha seats to be filled in the biennial polls to the House of Elders, 33 candidates from 10 states have been already elected unopposed.
The voting exercise by the legislators for the remaining 25 seats are being held in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Telangana.
The Rajya Sabha vacancies next month include 17 from the BJP and 12 from the Congress Party.
Three nominated members and celebrities Rekha, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, and social worker Anu Aga will also retire in April.
The BJP has fielded 18 candidates for the polls. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who has been representing the state of Gujarat quite sometime in the House of Elders, has shifted to Uttar Pradesh this year.
BJP has also fielded spokesman Anil Baluni from Uttarakhand and party leader Saroj Pandey from Chhattisgarh.
As many as seven Union Ministers are seeking re-election to the Rajya Sabha from various states.
They include J P Nadda, Ravi Shankar Prasad and Prakash Javadekar.
Counting of ballots will take place after 1700 hours in respective state capitals.
In West Bengal, Congress nominee Abhishek Manu Singhvi is banking on Trinamool Congress support. Five candidates are in the fray in Karnataka for four seats.
The BJP is already the single largest party in Rajya Sabha with 58 members- ahead of 54 of Congress - but is still to reach the majority mark.
Samajwadi Party which has 18 members in the Upper House now is expected to be the biggest loser due to its dismal performance in 2017 Assembly polls in UP, while chunk of it would go to the saffron kitty.
The five member strong BSP of Mayawati is also expected to be the loser in the bargain.
The Samajwadi party fielded actress-turned-politician Jaya Bachchan for Rajya Sabha leading to the ouster of aggrieved Naresh Agrawal, who has since joined BJP.
The saffron party strategists feel there could be cross voting in Uttar Pradesh. However, Samajwadi Party leaders however say party is united.
Speculation about differences in Samajwadi was rife after a dinner meeting hosted by Akhilesh Yadav was marked by absence of key leaders like Shivpal Singh Yadav. UNI
For the 58 Rajya Sabha seats to be filled in the biennial polls to the House of Elders, 33 candidates from 10 states have been already elected unopposed.
The voting exercise by the legislators for the remaining 25 seats are being held in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Telangana.
The Rajya Sabha vacancies next month include 17 from the BJP and 12 from the Congress Party.
Three nominated members and celebrities Rekha, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, and social worker Anu Aga will also retire in April.
The BJP has fielded 18 candidates for the polls. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who has been representing the state of Gujarat quite sometime in the House of Elders, has shifted to Uttar Pradesh this year.
BJP has also fielded spokesman Anil Baluni from Uttarakhand and party leader Saroj Pandey from Chhattisgarh.
As many as seven Union Ministers are seeking re-election to the Rajya Sabha from various states.
They include J P Nadda, Ravi Shankar Prasad and Prakash Javadekar.
Counting of ballots will take place after 1700 hours in respective state capitals.
In West Bengal, Congress nominee Abhishek Manu Singhvi is banking on Trinamool Congress support. Five candidates are in the fray in Karnataka for four seats.
The BJP is already the single largest party in Rajya Sabha with 58 members- ahead of 54 of Congress - but is still to reach the majority mark.
Samajwadi Party which has 18 members in the Upper House now is expected to be the biggest loser due to its dismal performance in 2017 Assembly polls in UP, while chunk of it would go to the saffron kitty.
The five member strong BSP of Mayawati is also expected to be the loser in the bargain.
The Samajwadi party fielded actress-turned-politician Jaya Bachchan for Rajya Sabha leading to the ouster of aggrieved Naresh Agrawal, who has since joined BJP.
The saffron party strategists feel there could be cross voting in Uttar Pradesh. However, Samajwadi Party leaders however say party is united.
Speculation about differences in Samajwadi was rife after a dinner meeting hosted by Akhilesh Yadav was marked by absence of key leaders like Shivpal Singh Yadav. UNI
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