Samajwadi Party candidates Ram Gopal Yadav and Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani on Wednesday filed their nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh.
Both Yadav and Nathwani, an executive of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), filed their nominations in the presence of party president Akhilesh Yadav, Shivpal Yadav and party MLAs.
Based on the current strength of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, the BJP-led alliance is in a position to win eight seats, while the SP, with Congress support, can secure two.
However, the Samajwadi Party is likely to filed its third candidate also.
Party spokesperson Rajendra Chowdhury said, “We will declare a third candidate also.” On being asked how the party will ensure victory of the third candidate, Chowdhury claimed that a number of BJP MLAs are dissatisfied with the working of the government and his party candidates will get due support from them.
The elections have been necessitated due to the expiry of the terms of nine Rajya Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh, including Union ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and BL Verma, BJP leaders Arun Singh, Geeta Shakya, Neeraj Shekhar, Brijlal and Seema Dwivedi, SP’s Ram Gopal Yadav and BSP’s Ramji Gautam, on November 25.
Puri and Verma will have to secure re-election to continue as Union ministers.
The 10th seat fell vacant after former deputy chief minister Dinesh Sharma resigned from the Upper House following his appointment as Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
A contest could arise if more candidates are fielded than the available seats, with cross-voting potentially becoming a factor.
According to the Election Commission schedule, October 6 is the last date for filing nominations. Scrutiny will be held on October 7 and candidates can withdraw their nominations till October 9.
Polling will be held from 9 am to 4 pm on October 16, followed by counting of votes on the same day.
In the 2024 Rajya Sabha elections, all eight BJP candidates and SP’s two candidates, Jaya Bachchan and Ramji Lal Suman, won in Uttar Pradesh.
The SP had fielded former Uttar Pradesh chief secretary Alok Ranjan as its third candidate, but he lost.
