New Delhi, Mar 16:
Bihar’s longest-serving chief minister Nitish Kumar and new BJP president Nitin Nabin were elected to the Rajya Sabha from Bihar as the ruling NDA swept the elections held in three states for 11 seats of the Upper House on Monday.
Of the total 37 vacancies of Rajya Sabha, elections were held for only 11 seats in Bihar, Odisha and Haryana as the rest of the members were earlier elected unopposed.
The ruling NDA alliance won eight seats, including one Independent backed by it, and the BJD bagged one seat in results announced on Monday night, while counting on two seats in Haryana has been put on hold amid allegations of irregularities. A total of 14 candidates were in the fray.
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NCP (SP) supremo Sharad Pawar and Union minister Ramdas Athawale were among the 26 candidates elected unopposed on March 9 after the withdrawal of nominations.
In the election held on Monday, the ruling NDA won all five seats in Bihar.
Besides Nitish Kumar, who heads the JD(U), and Nabin, the other winning candidates were Union Minister Ram Nath Thakur (JDU) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) chief Upendra Kushwaha, both sitting members who have been re-elected, and BJP’s Shivesh Kumar, who will enter the Upper House of Parliament for the first time.
Outgoing RS member Amarendra Dhari Singh lost the election even after RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav claimed he got the support of five MLAs of AIMIM and one BSP legislator.
In elections for four seats in Odisha, where a total of five candidates were in the fray, the BJP won three seats amid cross-voting. At least five MLAs – three from Congress and two from BJD – reportedly voted in favour of ruling BJP-backed Independent candidate Dilip Ray.
Among those elected were BJP state unit president Manmohan Samal and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Sujeet Kumar and opposition BJD’s Santrupt Misra, besides former Union minister Dilip Ray, who was backed by the ruling party.
BJD candidate and eminent urologist Dr Datteswar Hota, who was supported by the Congress and CPI-M, was the fifth candidate in the fray.
Returning Officer and Odisha Assembly secretary Satyabrata Rout handed over certificates to the four newly elected members.
Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi congratulated the BJP’s poll nominees and the Independent candidate backed by the party for winning the election.
In Haryana, which has seen cross-voting in the past too, the counting of votes for elections to two Rajya Sabha seats has been put on hold following the BJP and Congress members filing complaints alleging violation of vote secrecy.
The counting was to begin at 5 pm after voting ended at 4 pm. Earlier, voting was held for the two RS seats in Haryana on Monday, with the Indian National Lok Dal, which has two legislators, abstaining from voting.
Haryana minister Anil Vij, who recently fractured both his legs after a fall, arrived in a wheelchair to cast his vote.
The Congress MLAs who were moved to Himachal Pradesh ahead of the polling returned to the city in the morning to vote.
On the shifting of Congress MLAs, Vij said, “Congress does not trust its MLAs, which is why they were taken here and there.”
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to the Election Commission, alleging an attempt to interfere with the integrity of the RS election and seeking time for a party delegation to meet him. (PTI)
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