Rajya Sabha election to six Tamil Nadu seats on July 18
The elections are being held to fill vacancies that will arise from the retirement of six MPs – four from the AIADMK and one each from the DMK and the Communist Party of India (CPI) – on July 24.
With the election commission on Tuesday announcing July 18 as the day of polling to elect six Rajya Sabha MPs from Tamil Nadu, negotiations in the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam over nominees are expected to pick pace.
The elections are being held to fill vacancies that will arise from the retirement of six MPs – four from the AIADMK and one each from the DMK and the Communist Party of India – on July 24.
The AIADMK and the DMK can both send three members each to the Upper House by virtue of their respective strength in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. The DMK and its allies, Congress and Indian Union Muslim League, have a strength of 108 MLAs (100+7+1). The AIADMK has 123 MLAs. A member needs 34 votes to get elected, as per the election commission formula.
Five of the six vacancies are against berths being vacated by AIADMK’s T Rathinavel, V Maitreyan, KR Arjunan and Dr R Lakshmanan and CPI’s D Raja. The sixth vacancy has arisen after DMK’s Kanimozhi was elected to the Lok Sabha from Thoothukudi.
Both parties are in the process of finalising nominees for the Upper House. The DMK has said that it will to send Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) general secretary Vaiko to the Rajya Sabha as part of a pre-poll pact. Vaiko, who is well known for his oratory skills, has been elected to the Lok Sabha twice and the Upper House thrice.
The AIADMK is also expected to give one seat to the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) as part of a pre-poll alliance. This would most likely go to PMK youth wing secretary Anbumani Ramadoss who unsuccessfully contested the Dharmapuri Lok Sabha seat.
Other contenders in the DMK are its labour wing president Shanmugam and former Nagapattinam MP AKS Vijayan. In the AIADMK, a number of leaders are in the race -- V Maithreyan, former minister Gokula Indira, party presidium chairman Madusoodhanan and former MP Anwar Raajaah.
There has been speculation that the Congress approached the DMK for a berth for former PM Manmohan Singh, whose term as Rajya Sabha MP from Assam expired this month. There is also the possibility that the Congress may consider nominating Singh from Rajasthan, where a seat has fallen vacant with the death of Madan Lal Saini on Monday. But the issue has not yet been taken up, a party leader said requesting anonymity. As for the BJP asking the AIADMK to part with a seat, a BJP leader said it appeared unlikely. “There is some strain in the BJP-AIADMK relationship after the formation of the council of ministers…,” the leader said.
Nominations will start on July 8 and withdrawals can be made till July 11. The results will be announced on July 18 itself.
