New Delhi, March 16 – Nitish Kumar, the longest-serving chief minister of Bihar, and Nitin Nabin, the new president of the BJP, were elected to the Rajya Sabha from Bihar as the ruling NDA swept the elections held in three states for 11 seats of the Upper House on Monday.
Out of the total 37 vacancies in the Rajya Sabha, elections were held for only 11 seats in Bihar, Odisha, and Haryana, as the remaining members had been elected unopposed earlier.
The ruling NDA alliance won eight seats, including one independent candidate backed by it, and the BJD secured one seat. Counting for the remaining two seats in Haryana, which had been put on hold due to allegations of irregularities, began late at night.
A total of 14 candidates were in the fray.
Sharad Pawar, supremo of the NCP (SP), and Union Minister Ramdas Athawale were among the 26 candidates elected unopposed on March 9 after the withdrawal of nominations.
In the election held on Monday, the ruling NDA won all five seats in Bihar.
Besides Nitish Kumar, head of the JD(U), and Nabin, the other winning candidates were Union Minister Ram Nath Thakur (JD(U)) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) chief Upendra Kushwaha, both sitting members who have been re-elected, and BJP's Shivesh Kumar, who will enter the Upper House of Parliament for the first time.
Outgoing Rajya Sabha member Amarendra Dhari Singh lost the election, despite claims by RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav that he had received support from five MLAs of AIMIM and one BSP legislator.
In elections for four seats in Odisha, where a total of five candidates were in the fray, the BJP won three seats amidst cross-voting. At least five MLAs – three from Congress and two from BJD – reportedly voted in favour of the ruling BJP-backed Independent candidate Dilip Ray.
Among those elected were BJP state unit president Manmohan Samal, sitting Rajya Sabha MP Sujeet Kumar, and opposition BJD’s Santrupt Misra, besides former Union minister Dilip Ray, who was backed by the ruling party.
BJD candidate and renowned urologist Dr. Datteswar Hota, who was supported by the Congress and CPI-M, was the fifth candidate in the fray.
Returning Officer and Odisha Assembly secretary Satyabrata Rout handed over certificates to the four newly elected members.
Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi congratulated the BJP's poll nominees and the Independent candidate backed by the party for winning the election.
In a post on X, Majhi said, "Heartfelt congratulations and best wishes to Shri @SamalManmohan7 Ji, who emerged victorious as a candidate on behalf of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Rajya Sabha elections, the party’s senior leader Shri @SujeetKOfficial Ji, and the party-supported independent candidate Shri @DilipRayOdisha Ji".
In Haryana, which has seen cross-voting in the past, the counting of votes for elections to two Rajya Sabha seats began in the night after it was delayed as the BJP and the Congress filed complaints alleging violation of vote secrecy.
The counting was supposed to begin at 5 pm after voting ended at 4 pm. It finally started after the poll panel gave a go-ahead, according to official sources.
Earlier, voting was held for the two RS seats in Haryana on Monday, with the Indian National Lok Dal, which has two legislators, abstaining from voting.
Haryana minister Anil Vij, who recently fractured both his legs after a fall, arrived in a wheelchair to cast his vote.
The Congress MLAs who were moved to Himachal Pradesh ahead of the polling returned to the city in the morning to vote.
On the shifting of Congress MLAs, Vij said, "Congress does not trust its MLAs, which is why they were taken here and there."
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to the Election Commission, alleging an attempt to interfere with the integrity of the RS election and seeking time for a party delegation to meet him.
"There is a clear attempt to interfere with the integrity of the election and it must be stopped/ redressed by the ECI immediately. Furthermore, no disqualification of our legitimate voters/ votes cast can be allowed in what is clearly a transparent attempt to taint/derail the process," it said.
BJP's Sanjay Bhatia, independent Satish Nandal and Congress candidate Karamvir Singh Boudh are in the fray from the state.
The Congress, which has 37 MLAs, needs only 31 first preference votes to win one seat.
The BJP will have the maximum number of seats in the Rajya Sabha after this round of elections.
Among those who were elected unopposed to the Upper House were former deputy speaker of Lok Sabha M Thambidurai of DMK and noted lawyer Abhishek Singhvi of the Congress.
In Maharashtra, all seven candidates, including six of the ruling Mahayuti alliance and opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi nominee Sharad Pawar, were elected unopposed.
In poll-bound West Bengal, ruling TMC's four candidates – Babul Supriyo, former West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar, senior Supreme Court advocate Menaka Guruswamy and actor Koel Mallick were also elected unopposed, along with BJP's former state unit president Rahul Sinha.
In Telangana, Congress candidates Abhishek Singhvi and Vem Narender Reddy were elected unopposed. In Tamil Nadu, all six candidates were elected unopposed.
AIADMK sitting MP M Thambidurai and PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss, along with ruling DMK candidates Tiruchi Siva and J Constantine Ravindran, were elected. Besides, Congress candidate M Christopher Tilak and DMDK treasurer L K Sudeesh were also elected unopposed.
In the hill state of Himachal Pradesh, Congress candidate Anurag Sharma, a close confidant of chief minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, was elected.