All 10 Rajya Sabha candidates from Uttar Pradesh—eight from the Bharatiya Janata Party and two from the Samajwadi Party—were declared elected unopposed on Friday, an official said.
Returning officer Ajit Kumar Verma said, “All the 10 candidates, who were in the fray for the Rajya Sabha, have been declared elected. Friday (October 9) was the last date for the withdrawal of nominations.”
The eight BJP candidates declared elected include Dharampal Singh, Radhakant Ojha, Prakash Pal, Vidyasagar Sonkar, Gopi Krishna Pandey, Priyanka Singh Rawat, Ram Pratap Singh Chauhan and Shruti Gangwar. The two SP candidates elected to Rajya Sabha are Ram Gopal Yadav and Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani.
“Except Samajwadi Party candidate Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani, the rest have collected their certificates. Representatives of Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav and BJP candidate Radhakant Ojha have collected the certificates on their behalf,” Verma said.
Nathwani is likely to collect his certificate on October 12, a person familiar with the matter said.
Congratulating the BJP candidates, chief minister Yogi Adityanath, on X in Hindi, said, “Heartiest congratulations to all BJP candidates from Uttar Pradesh for being elected unopposed in the Rajya Sabha biennial elections-2026.”
“I have full confidence that you all will make a significant contribution in realising the resolve of our Prime Minister @narendramodi ji for ‘Viksit Bharat’ and in giving new momentum to the nation’s progress. At the same time, you will enhance the dignity of the Upper House. Best wishes for your all’s bright tenure,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}“I have full confidence that you all will make a significant contribution in realising the resolve of our Prime Minister @narendramodi ji for ‘Viksit Bharat’ and in giving new momentum to the nation’s progress. At the same time, you will enhance the dignity of the Upper House. Best wishes for your all’s bright tenure,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}The terms of 10 Rajya Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh end on November 25, necessitating the biennial elections to the Upper House.
UP minister Dharampal Singh, an OBC leader from the Lodh community and among the eight BJP picks to be elected unopposed, dedicated his Rajya Sabha win to former UP chief minister and his political guru, late Kalyan Singh, who also hailed from the same community.
Dharampal, after receiving his certificate, paid tribute to Kalyan Singh’s statue opposite the municipal corporation office.
“We will win 2027 UP polls to make it a hat-trick in UP,” he said.
Among the Rajya Sabha members retiring from the state are Union ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and BL Verma, BJP leaders Arun Singh, Geeta Shakya, Neeraj Shekhar, Brijlal and Seema Dwivedi, Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav and BSP’s Ramji Gautam.
The Rajya Sabha seat held by former UP deputy chief minister Dinesh Sharma has been vacant since September 11, after he resigned following his appointment as the Lieutenant Governor of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Earlier, the Samajwadi Party was expected to field a third candidate to force a contest for the 10th seat. However, party chief Akhilesh Yadav ended the speculation on Tuesday, the last day of the nomination, saying on X, “Now, our focus is not on three, but on 403.”Yadav was hinting at the state polls for the 403-member UP Assembly, which are due in early 2027.
(With PTI inputs)