The BJP on Wednesday named Union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and L Murugan its Rajya Sabha candidates from Odisha and Madhya Pradesh respectively.
If elected, a near certainty, it will be the second Rajya Sabha term for the two leaders from these states. Railway Minister Vaishnaw is likely to get elected with the support of the state's ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), as was the case during the former IAS officer's election for the first term in 2019.
From Madhya Pradesh, the BJP has named three more candidates besides Murugan, the MoS in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, for the five vacancies from the state. The BJP has the numbers to win four seats while the Congress can win one.
It also named two candidates for the Rajya Sabha polls in Rajasthan, excluding outgoing MP and Union minister Bhupender Yadav. The BJP fielded former state minister Chunnilal Garasiya and former MLA Madan Rathore. The tenure of two Rajya Sabha members from Rajasthan — former prime minister Manmohan Singh (Congress) and Bhupender Yadav (BJP) — is ending on April 3.
