Hyderabad, March 9 – Senior Supreme Court advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy’s close aide Vem Narender Reddy have been unopposed elected to the Rajya Sabha from the state.
Returning Officer Upender Reddy announced their election on Monday after the deadline for withdrawing nominations ended.
As only Singhvi and Narender Reddy remained in the race for the two seats, they were elected unopposed.
An independent candidate named Sai had also filed his nomination, but his papers were rejected.
The Returning Officer handed the nomination papers to Singhvi and Narender Reddy.
Speaking to the media, Narender Reddy thanked Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Revanth Reddy, and other leaders.
Singhvi has been re-elected to the Rajya Sabha from Telangana, while Narender Reddy will be making his debut as a member of the upper house of Parliament.
Narender Reddy was an advisor to Chief Minister Reddy. The party leadership chose him as the second candidate, despite ignoring several senior leaders.
The terms of incumbent members Singhvi and KR Suresh Reddy end on April 9, necessitating elections. The elections were scheduled for March 16.
Suresh Reddy is currently the BRS Parliamentary Party leader, while Singhvi was elected to the seat as a Congress candidate in 2024, replacing K. Keshava Rao, who resigned after joining the Congress.
As the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) lacked the numbers to contest the polls, both Singhvi and Narender Reddy have been unopposed elected.
The Congress has 66 MLAs in the 119-member Assembly, while its ally Communist Party of India (CPI) has one member. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), considered a friendly party of Congress, has seven MLAs.
On paper, the BRS has 37 members, but 10 of them switched loyalties to Congress in 2024. The BJP has eight MLAs.