Kamal Haasan to make Rajya Sabha debut, set to be elected unopposed
As an ally of the DMK, Haasan-led MNM was allotted a Rajya Sabha seat as per an understanding reached between the two parties ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
In a significant political development, actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan is poised to make his debut in the Rajya Sabha. The MNM chief, along with five other candidates, is set to be elected unopposed after their nominations were officially accepted on Tuesday.
As an ally of the DMK, Haasan-led MNM was allotted a Rajya Sabha seat as per an understanding reached between the two parties ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Haasan campaigned for the DMK alliance in last year's Parliamentary election.
A release from the office of the Returning Officer/Additional Secretary, Legislative Assembly Secretariat, said the nominations of Makkal Neethi Maiam founder Haasan, DMK nominees P Wilson, SR Sivalingam and Rajathi and IS Inbadurai and M Dhanapal (both AIADMK), were taken up for scrutiny on Tuesday.
With the nomination of these candidates being accepted, they are now set to be elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha.
Wilson will be representing the state for a successive term, while this would be Haasan's maiden innings in the House of Representatives.
He had unsuccessfully contested the 2021 Assembly polls in Coimbatore South and lost to BJP Mahila Morcha chief Vanathi Srinivasan. He joined the DMK-led bloc last year.
Six Rajya Sabha members from Tamil Nadu, including DMK ally MDMK's top leader Vaiko and PMK's Anbumani Ramadoss, are set to retire on July 24, 2025, and the Election Commission had last month announced elections to the Upper House from Tamil Nadu.
Meanwhile, nominations from seven independent candidates were rejected during the same process.
The candidates filed nomination papers to contest for the June 19 biennial polls to the Rajya Sabha from Tamil Nadu.
In the presence of Chief Minister MK Stalin, Haasan signed and presented the papers to the Returning Officer and Additional Secretary (Legislative Assembly), B Subramaniyam, at the Secretariat.
Rajya Sabha election: Key dates
The key Rajya Sabha election-related dates are June 2, 2025 (issue of notification), June 9 (last date for nominations), June 10 (scrutiny of nominations, June 12 (last date for withdrawal of candidatures) and June 19 (date of poll and counting of votes).
(with PTI inputs)
