Rajya Sabha elections: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday (July 10) filed his nomination for Rajya Sabha from Gujarat's Gandhinagar.
After filing his nomination for Rajya Sabha elections, EAM Jaishankar expressed gratitude towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the people and MLAs of Gujarat. He hoped that he will be able to contribute to the progress that will take place in the coming 4 years. "First of all I would like to express gratitude to PM Modi, BJP leadership and people and MLAs of Gujarat..Four years back, I received the honour to represent Gujarat in the Rajya Sabha. I received the opportunity to become a part of the changes in the country under the leadership of PM Modi in the last 4 years. I hope to be able to contribute to the progress that will take place in the coming 4 years," he said.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the schedule for the election on 10 Rajya Sabha seats across three states– Goa, Gujarat and West Bengal to be held on July 24. The counting of votes will be held on the same day. The last date to file nominations is July 13 and the last date for withdrawal of candidatures is July 17.
Jaishankar term will end on August 18
The election was necessitated as the term of Jaishankar will end on August 18 along with two other Rajay Sabha members Jugalsinh Lokhandwala and Dinesh Anavadiya from Gujarat. However, the BJP has not officially declared the names of candidates for the three Rajya Sabha seats but Jaishankar's nomination was certain.
Jaishankar was sworn in as cabinet minister in the government in 2019. He was then nominated to the Upper House to the seat vacated by Union home Minister Amit Shah who was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2019 from Gandhinagar.
Meanwhile, the Congress had said it would not field candidates for three Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat as it did not have enough MLAs in the 182-member Assembly. Notably, of the 11 Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat, eight are currently held by BJP and the others by Congress.
10 RS members are retiring
According to a statement issued by the EC, the 10 members are retiring between July 28 and August 18 on the completion of their six-year term in the Upper House.
Six MPs O'Brien, Dola Sen, Sushmita Dev, Shanta Chhetri and Sukhendu Sekhar Ray from Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Congress member Pradip Bhattacharya are retiring from West Bengal on August 18. One seat from Goa will also go to the polls as the term of the BJP MP Vinay D Tendulkar will end on July 28. Jaishankar, Dinesh Jemalbhai Anavadia and Lokhandwala Jugal Singh Mathurji are the three BJP MPs from Gujarat whose terms are ending on August 18.
Also Read: Elections for 10 Rajya Sabha seats on July 24; Jaishankar among others in fray
(With agencies input)
