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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National President Nitin Nabin on Monday appointed Central Observers for the Rajya Sabha elections in Bihar, Haryana and Odisha.
According to a press release, in Bihar, the BJP appointed Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma and Union Minister of State (MoS) Harsh Malhotra. Gujarat Deputy CM Harsh Sanghvi was appointed as observer in Haryana, and Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule was appointed in Odisha. The polling for the upcoming biennial elections to the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) to fill the 37 seats across 10 states is scheduled to take place on March 16, with the counting of votes on the same day at 5 pm. 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 last date of nominations is March 5, followed by scrutiny on March 6. The candidates can withdraw their nominations till March 9. In Odisha, four seats will undergo polling after being vacant in April. Odisha BJP chief Manmohan Samal and Sujeet Kumar have filed nominations for two seats. In Bihar, five seats will hold polls. Incumbent Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's nomination led to a stir in the state politics. While at first the JD(U) leaders opposed the move, they later accepted the party chief's decision. Bihar Minister Shravan Kumar said that the Janata Dal (United) workers were upset with Nitish Kumar's decision to move to the Rajya Sabha but have resolved to stand by him and support him. Speaking to ANI, Shravan Kumar said that Nitish Kumar clarified his decision to the party leaders in a meeting. BJP President Nitin Nabin is also a candidate for the party in Bihar. Meanwhile, polls will be held for two Upper House seats in Haryana. (ANI)
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