The terms of both ministers in the Upper House will conclude on June 21. Bittu serves as a Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan, while Kurian represents Madhya Pradesh. With neither minister being renominated and Harsh Malhotra recently taking on the role of BJP president for Delhi, there is widespread speculation regarding a potential Cabinet reshuffle.
Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri’s Rajya Sabha term will also come to an end in November.
Chugh, who is the BJP’s national general secretary hailing from Punjab, currently oversees party operations in Jammu and Kashmir.
Poonia, who served as the former Rajasthan BJP president, is responsible for the party’s affairs in Haryana. He faced defeat in the last assembly election in Rajasthan in 2023. The BJP’s central election committee announced a total of 11 candidates for the Rajya Sabha polls across five states, including Debashish Samantaray from Odisha.
Samantaray recently joined the BJP after leaving the BJD. Before his departure, he held the position of Rajya Sabha MP from Odisha.
As per the list, Rajubhai Shukla, Mukeshbhai Rathwa, Mansingh Parmar, and Jitendra Meghjibhai Kanzariya are set to run as BJP candidates from Gujarat, while Rajneesh Agrawal will contest from Madhya Pradesh.
Alka Gurjar, the BJP’s national secretary and co-in-charge for Delhi, is vying for a seat in Rajasthan.
The party has nominated its Manipur president A Sharda Devi as a candidate from the state alongside senior leader Tai Tagak from Arunachal Pradesh, as per the announcement from party national general secretary Arun Singh.
The Rajya Sabha elections for 24 seats in 10 states, including Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Manipur, are scheduled for June 18. Additionally, by-elections for one seat each in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Odisha will be conducted on the same date. The deadline for submitting nominations is June 8.
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