FILE
Rajya Sabha Election results: The Congress party has won 2 seats in Rajasthan in the Rajya Sabha polls. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has managed to get one seat in the state. K C Venugopal and Neeraj Dangi of the Congress were declared winner, while Rajendra Gehlot of the BJP also got elected.
The BJP had fielded a second candidate as well, Onkar Singh Lakhawat, but he lost. With this, the number of Congress party's Rajya Sabha MPs from Rajasthan has increased to three, out of a total of 10. The rest seven are BJP members.
The counting of votes began at 5 pm. The polling got underway at 9 pm and continued till 4 pm.
Social distancing norms and other precautions were taken care of during the polling of votes amid coronavirus pandemic.
To cast their votes, the MLAs reached the assembly in buses from the hotels where they were staying. Congress MLAs, Independents and legislators of other supporting parties reached the assembly in six buses. The Congress had confined its MLAs to the resort alleging that the BJP was trying to lure them away.
The Congress nominated KC Venugopal and Neeraj Dangi for the RS polls while the BJP fielded Rajendra Gehlot and Onkar Singh Lakhawat. The BJP had initially nominated only Rajendra Gehlot but it later named Lakhawat on the last nominatoon day.
In the house fo 200, the Congress has 107 MLAs and is supported by Independents and legislators from the Rashtriya Lok Dal, CPM and Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP). The BJP has 72 MLAs and the support of three Rashtriya Loktantrik Party members.
Rajasthan has a total of 10 Rajya Sabha seats with six of them currently held by the BJP and one by the Congress. Today's polling was for the remaiming three seats.
The lone Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan is former prime minister Manmohan Singh. He was elected unopposed in the Rajya Sabha bypolls held last year when the seat fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Madan Lal Saini.
