INDIA SECURES UNSC SEAT WITH 184 VOTES

NEW DELHI: Elections to 20 vacant Rajya Sabha seats will be held on Friday amid fears of poaching that have prompted political parties to move their lawmakers to hotels and resorts in some states. They will be the country’s first major voting exercise since the Covid-19 pandemic prompted sweeping measures in March to ensure social distancing to check its spread.

The seats are four each from Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh; three each from Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan; two from Jharkhand; and one each from Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, and Meghalaya. Nearly 1,000 legislators will vote across these states. Health departments of these states oversaw the preparations for the elections. Eight Congress legislators have resigned from the Gujarat assembly since the Rajya Sabha polls were announced and reduced the party’s strength to 65 from 79. It has forced the Congress to put up its legislators in resorts in Mount Abu and Ahmedabad. The Congress needs the support of five more MLAs to help both Shaktisinh Gohil and Bharatsinh Solanki to win. The BJP, which has 103 members, needs two extra votes to ensure the victory of its three candidates --Abhay Bhardwaj, Ramilaben

Bara, and Narhari Amin.

The ruling BJP is set to win two seats in Madhya Pradesh as the BSP, SP, which have 2 and 1 lawmakers respectively, as well as two of the four independent legislators pledged support to the party on Thursday. The BJP has fielded former Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and Sumer Singh Solanki while Congress Digvijaya Singh and Phool Singh Baraiya. State BJP leader Dr Hitesh Bajpai said, “We are going to have support of all the non-Congress MLAs and our candidates will win the election comfortably. This is why Congress is worried.”

Congress’s two candidates, KC Venugopal and Neeraj Dangi, are expected to win from Rajasthan as the party enjoys the support of 125 legislators, including independents. The BJP has fielded Rajendra Gehlot and Onkar Singh Lakhawat.

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot has accused the BJP of trying to poach Congress lawmakers and has lodged a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Bureau and Special Operations Group against the BJP. The BJP has denied the allegations.