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Congress MLA Vijay Wadettiwar on Wednesday said the party will support Sharad Pawar for the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls, following a call from high command and Mallikarjun Kharge.
He added that while Congress had initially claimed the seat, coordination with NCP and adherence to Maha Vikas Aghadi ethics led to backing Pawar, reflecting unity among alliance partners ahead of crucial elections. Speaking to the reporters, Wadettiwar said, "We had claimed the Rajya Sabha seat because our party is a national party. There was a strong demand for it. However, many leaders from the NCP Sharad Pawar faction contacted us and also reached out to Uddhav Thackeray. Among them, Sharad Pawar is the senior-most... We are abiding by the ethics of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). Our high command has decided to support Pawar Saheb. We've received a call that Mallikarjun Kharge has decided that Pawar Saheb should be supported." Earlier on Sunday, the Congress high command held a meeting at Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi's residence in New Delhi to discuss the selection of candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, sources said. The Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the schedule for the upcoming biennial elections to the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) to fill the 37 seats across 10 states, as the members are set to complete their term in April 2026, a press note stated. According to the press note, the term of 37 members who were elected from Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Telangana will conclude in the month of April, vacating the seats for new members to be elected. The notification will be issued on February 26, commencing the election process. The last date of nominations is March 5, followed by scrutiny on March 6. The candidates can withdraw their nominations till March 9. The polling is scheduled to take place on March 16, with the counting of votes on the same day at 5 pm. (ANI)
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