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Rajya Sabha polls: Raising the pitch, BJP appoints union ministers as election in-charge in states headed for keen contest
Vibha Sharma
New Delhi, June 1
Further raising the pitch of the June-10 elections to the Rajya Sabha, the BJP on Wednesday appointed Union ministers as in-charge of four states—Rajasthan, Haryana, Karnataka and Maharashtra— headed for a keen contest.
These are the states where the party has either launched an "extra" candidate or is backing an Independent, paving the way for a nail-biting finish.
Notably, the BJP has fielded additional candidates— Dhananjay Mahadik in Maharashtra and Lahar Singh Siroya in Karnataka—and is backing independent candidates—media barons Subhash Chandra in Rajasthan and Kartikeya Sharma in Haryana.
Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat are in-charge for Rajasthan and Haryana, respectively. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw is the in-charge for Maharashtra, another state headed for a close contest, and Tourism and Culture Minister G. Kishen Reddy for Karnataka where both the BJP and the Congress have fielded extra candidates for the fourth seat.
In Rajasthan, the BJP is backing Chandra who filed his nomination papers as an Independent on Tuesday. The state has four seats; the Congress has announced three candidates, and the BJP one. For the third candidate of the Congress to be elected, the party requires the support of Independent MLAs and members of other/smaller parties.
Chandra's presence in Rajasthan can spell trouble for Congress's Pramod Tiwari, who as an Uttar Pradesh resident is considered an "outsider".
By supporting Chandra, the BJP is hoping to corner Congress in a state where it is ruling.
The move has added to the divide within the state's ruling Congress, sources say. BJP candidate Ghanshyam Tiwari is a former minister of the Vasundhara Raje cabinet.
Shekhawat will oversee matters in Haryana where the BJP is backing Kartikeya Sharma, who filed as an Independent with the BJP-JJP backing, thereby creating problems for Congress nominee Ajay Maken.
In Maharashtra, the BJP has declared Mahadik as the third candidate, spelling trouble for Congress nominee Imran Pratapgarhi.
Coming just a month before the Presidential elections, the elections to fill 57 Rajya Sabha seats across 15 states falling vacant due to the retirement of members on different dates between June and August have assumed importance for all parties in the fray.