Jaishankar files his Rajya Sabha nomination papers
In a tweet in Gujarati, External affairs minister S Jaishankar said he considers it his great fortune to have had the opportunity to represent Gujarat in the Rajya Sabha
External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Monday filed his Rajya Sabha nomination papers at the Gujarat assembly in Gandhinagar in the presence of chief minister Bhupendra Patel and state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief C R Paatil.
In a tweet in Gujarati, he said he considers it his great fortune to have had the opportunity to represent Gujarat in the Rajya Sabha. “I am grateful to the people of Gujarat for giving me the opportunity to serve the motherland. With all your good wishes and blessings, I submitted my nomination for Rajya Sabha again today [Monday].”
The election for 10 Rajya Sabha seats (Goa, Gujarat, and West Bengal) is scheduled on July 24. The last date for filing nominations is July 13 and the deadline for withdrawal on July 17. Polling, if required, will be held on July 24.
The BJP is set to win three Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat uncontested. The Congress has decided against fielding any candidate due to a shortage of required lawmakers.
In the 2022 Gujarat assembly elections, the BJP won 156 of 182 seats. The Congress managed to win only 17 seats and Aam Aadmi Party five.
Out of 11 Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat, the BJP holds eight. The remaining seats are with Congress. The Rajya Sabha term of BJP’s Jaishankar, Jugalji Thakor, and Dinesh Anavadiya will expire on August 18. The BJP is yet to name the other two candidates.
