BJP fields ex-NCW chief Rekha Sharma in Rajya Sabha bypoll from Haryana

The party announced a total of three candidates, including Rekha Sharma, for the bypolls to be held on December 20.

Published on: Dec 9, 2024, 18:03:08 IST

By HT News Desk | Edited by Shivam Pratap Singh

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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday fielded former National Commission for Women chief Rekha Sharma for Rajya Sabha bypoll from Haryana.

FILE: National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Rekha Sharma chaied a meeting of the monitoring committee for 12 pilot special cells in Srinagar. (PTI)

The party announced a total of three candidates, including Sharma, for the bypoll for one Rajya Sabha seat each in Haryana, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, PTI reported.

The voting for the bypolls will be held on December 20.

Apart from Sharma, the party has fielded Ryaga Krishnaiah from Andhra Pradesh. The former YSR Congress leader switched over to the BJP after quitting his Rajya Sabha membership in August.

Sujeet Kumar has been fielded by the party from Odisha. He is another leader who switched from Biju Janata Dal to the BJP. Kumar had resigned from his upper house seat after which he was expelled by the BJD.

The vacancies for the bypolls

Three vacancies arose in Andhra Pradesh when YSRCP members Venkataramana Rao Mopidevi, Beedha Masthan Rao Yadav and Ryaga Krishnaiah quit their membership in August. So the bypolls are being held for a total of six seats.

Yadav and Krishnaiah's terms as Rajya Sabha members were to end on June 21, 2028, while Mopidevi was to retire on June 21, 2026.

A Rajya Sabha seat fell vacant after Sujeet Kumar quit his membership, following which he was expelled by the Biju Janata Dal. His term was to end on April 2, 2026.

Krishan Lal Panwar of the BJP had quit his Rajya Sabha seat from Haryana following his election as an MLA in the recent state polls.

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has a slender majority in the Rajya Sabha with the support of 119 members. The BJP itself is the largest party in the upper House with 96 members. Adding two more to the ranks will give the ruling party at the Centre some breathing space.

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