BJP announces eight Rajya Sabha candidates from Uttar Pradesh
The BJP has released a list of eight candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh. The list notably excludes Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and BL Verma, with the party aiming to balance caste representation.
First reported 3 hours ago · latest update 1 hour ago
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Monday announced its eight picks for the October 16 Rajya Sabha poll in Uttar Pradesh, fielding two women candidates. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, whose term in the Upper House is at an end, was not on the list of nominees, which party insiders indicated shows the Central Council of Ministers is due for a shakeup.
Former Lok Sabha MP Priyanka Singh Rawat and Shruti Gangwar, Jharkhand Governor Santosh Gangwar’s daughter and a prominent member of the Uttar Pradesh BJP, were among the party’s nominees in the politically important state. Dharampal Singh, Radhakant Ojha, Prakash Pal, Vidyasagar Sonkar, Gopi Krishna Pandey, and Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan were the others.
Ten Rajya Sabha seats are falling vacant in Uttar Pradesh, eight of which are currently held by the BJP, while the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) hold one each. How the numbers add up Currently, the BJP-led NDA holds 150 seats in the 245-member Rajya Sabha, while non-NDA parties account for just over 100 seats.
The UP Assembly currently has 396 members in the 403-member House, following the death of seven MLAs in the past 11 months. Each Rajya Sabha candidate, therefore, will require 37 first-preference votes to win. The October 16 polls is going to be a tough contest between the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP).
The BJP and SP have the numbers to win seven and two seats respectively out of the 10 at stake. The timing of the polls adds to the intrigue as they come months before the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections likely to be held early next year. The BJP has 255 MLAs and its NDA allies add another 33: Apna Dal (S) 13, RLD 9, SBSP 6, and NISHAD Party 5.
This takes its tally to 288. With the support of Puja Pal; unaffiliated MLAs Manoj Pandey, Rakesh Pratap Singh, and Abhay Singh who were expelled from the SP in June 2025 for cross-voting in the 2024 Rajya Sabha polls; and two MLAs of the Raja Bhaiyya-led Jansatta Dal (Loktantrik), the NDA’s effective strength reaches 294, two short of the required 296 (37 for each) first-preference votes to ensure victory of eight candidates.
Of the 10 seats that will go to polls, the BJP holds eight at present.
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Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri not on list as BJP names 8 Rajya Sabha candidates
3 hours ago · Jatin AnandBJP Nominates 8 Leaders To Rajya Sabha From UP, Hardeep Puri Not On List
The BJP has announced eight names for the coming Rajya Sabha election from Uttar Pradesh, keeping a balance between castes and ensuring election on at least one seat on October 16.
1 hour ago